Marrowfrost's Random One-shots
by Anthraviolets
Summary: A book for my challenges/short stories relating to Warriors (well duh), with written stories of AUs, canon cats, OCs, and more! Some are long, and others are short (eh...not really). If it peaks your interest, come and take a look!
1. Mimic - TorrentClan

**Okay, so I'm going to place all of my challenges for Warriors in here because it's far more easier for me to do. Hope that doesn't annoy anyone in general, really.**

* * *

Fernmist looked over to her mate, Sagestep. They had two healthy kits. After two moons of waiting, they'd finally come. Fernmist still didn't know what to name them, though. One was a pale brown tabby tom like Fernmist, and the other was a mottled cream and gray she-cat. _What should I name them though?_ The thought kept playing over and over in her head.

"They're beautiful, Fernmist. I'm so proud." Sagestep cooed, licking her forehead. Fernmist had to agree with him- their kits were beautiful. But what to name them?

Fernmist knew that they needed to decide soon. It would be shameful for these kits not to have a name, especially since they are now officially part of this world.

Sagestep looked at the pale brown tabby tom. "What about Doekit for him?" He suggested in his usual soft voice. Fernmist nodded.

"That's a wonderful name," Fernmist whispered, smiling at her kits. "But what about that one? What shall we name her?"

Sagestep was silent. He didn't know what to call the other kit, either. Fernmist was bamboozled. How could naming a kit be so hard? She thought of cats that she could name her after: Fawnfoot, Adderchaser or Wingstar? The name Wingstar caught her attention.

Wingstar was the previous leader of their Clan, TornadoClan. She was a mottled cream and gray she-cat that was a strong leader and had saved her Clan many times over. During the Great Famine, she led TornadoClan to safety by traveling to a new home. Fernmist's only other daughter. How could've Fernmist be so blind? Obviously her kit would have to be named after her leader and daughter.

"I think the name Wingkit would suit her." Fernmist meowed softly. "Her pelt is exactly like Wingstar's." Sagestep purred in agreement. Fernmist's kits names were then decided as Doekit and Wingkit. But little did they know, those names would decide the fate of TornadoClan.

* * *

Wingkit looked over at her brother, Doekit. He was twitching nervously under the gaze of his Clanmates. Wingkit couldn't blame him. They were becoming apprentices today! But unease pricked her belly as she stood in the clearing, waiting for Dapplestar to announce their apprenticeship. Many of her Clanmates expected her to grow up to be just like her older sister, Wingstar. They wanted her to. But she didn't want the path of a previous warrior- she wanted to be herself.

"All cats old enough to catch their own prey, gather in the Small Hollow for a Clan meeting!" Dapplestar yowled. All the cats in camp quickly clustered into the groove, curious what this was about. "Today two young kits are becoming apprentices! Doekit and Wingkit, please step forward!" Wingkit's whiskers quivered in excitement. She was becoming an apprentice!

Wingkit looked back at her mother, Fernmist, who was gazing at them with proud shining in her eyes. Sagestep was next to her, smiling at their kits. She and Doekit stepped forwards, ready to receive their new names.

"Doekit and Wingkit, you both have reached the age of six moons. From this day forward, you both shall be known as Doepaw and Wingpaw." Dapplestar meowed.

The cats in the clearing grew even more excited at the sound of their names. They anticipated the announcement of the two new apprentices mentors, their tails twitching.

Dapplestar was still collected. "Doepaw, your mentor shall be Burnwhisker. Burnwhisker, we ask that you pass on your courage and intelligence to Doepaw." She turned to the newly named Wingpaw. "Wingpaw has decided to tread the path of a medicine cat. Her mentor will be Stagwatcher." Her Clanmates looked uncomfortable with the decision.

"But Stagwatcher was just a 'paw a moon ago! How can we trust her to be a good medicine cat?" An elder named Fallowclaw yowled. Wingpaw saw Stagwatcher shifting his paws uncomfortably. _I don't blame him._

Stagwatcher had become a full medicine cat a moon ago. His mentor, Nightbreeze named him before her death. Nightbreeze was a well respected cat, but she died too quickly to properly teach Stagwatcher. Stagwatcher was only nine moons old, and he was already a full medicine cat. Many cats in camp didn't trust him with their battle wounds or plain injuries.

"So you don't trust your medicine cat, Fallowclaw?" Sagestep hissed from across the clearing. "The one who helps you stay alive to this day?"

Fallowclaw growled at Sagestep, but he backed down. Everyone's gaze was now rested on Stagwatcher, who was looking down at his paws. He then noticed everyone staring at him, awaiting his confirmation. Stagwatcher nodded.

"I will be taking Wingpaw as my apprentice." He meowed firmly. Many of the cats still looked somewhat uncomfortable with the answer, but they were happy that they would be getting a new medicine cat.

"Wingpaw! Doepaw!" The cats cheered. Wingpaw's paws tingled with excitement. She was an official member of TornadoClan! The Clan dispersed and soon it was only Wingpaw, Doepaw and a few others who were still in the Small Hollow. Soft pawsteps could be heard from behind her. She turned to see Burnwhisker and her sister Blistersong.

"Congrats, you two." Blistersong meowed evenly. Her slow and whisper-like voice unnerved Wingpaw. "It's good for TornadoClan to have more apprentices, right Burnwhisker?"

Burnwhisker nodded. "Yes, it's wonderful. You both will be great members of TornadoClan, I just know it." She turned to Doepaw. "Come on, Doepaw. I'll show you around the territory." Doepaw flicked his tail goodbye to Wingpaw and followed Burnwhisker out of camp. Wingpaw was left behind, still with Blistersong.

"You were named after Wingstar, correct? TornadoClan expects great things from you, Wingpaw." Blistersong spoke softly. "You will be one of the most important and special cats to follow in Wingstar's pawsteps." She then walked away over to the fresh-kill pile, sharing a mouse with her sister Blazestream.

Wingpaw looked down at her paws. "But I don't want to be special or important…" She whispered to herself.

* * *

Wingpaw padded alongside her brother, Doepaw. It had been two moons since they'd been made apprentices. All Wingpaw had heard from her Clanmates was "She's just like Wingstar!" or "Wingpaw will be just as great as Wingstar!" She didn't want to be like Wingstar. By now she'd grown sick and tired of it. Why couldn't she just be Wingpaw?

"I can't believe we've been apprentices for two moons, Wingpaw!" Doepaw whispered incredulously. "Isn't it great?" _No._

Wingpaw weakly nodded her head. "Yep, it's amazing!" She lied, trying to put as much fake joy in her voice as possible.

He smiled. "You're doing so good, too, Wingpaw! You might not be leader one day, but I'm sure you'll be an awesome medicine cat! Surely cats will respect you like Wingstar!" Wingpaw felt like she wanted to throw up. _I will_ never _be like her!_ Doepaw tilted his head. "What's wrong?"

"Will you excuse me for a moment?" Wingpaw innocently asked. He nodded. Grateful he didn't think to much about it, Wingpaw padded over behind a nearby bush, taking cover from Doepaw's line of sight.

 _Even my own brother connected me to Wingstar!_ She wailed internally. Wingpaw didn't want to be like Wingstar. Everyone else wanted her to be exactly like her- leader or not. _They don't stop to think about just Wingpaw! When they look at me, she's all they see…_

She unsheathed her claws, digging them in the dirt. Sometimes her own Clanmates would mistake her for Wingstar. Sometimes it was her own _mother_. In their eyes, Wingpaw was just a replacement Wingstar, but medicine cat version. _Well, I'm_ not _. But how can they see when all they see is Wingstar?_ Wingpaw looked up at the sky. _Isn't Wingstar up there? Then why do they act like I'm her all the time? We just share a pelt color, name and parents. We are_ nothing _alike. And I'll prove it._

"With blood." Wingpaw muttered. "If it's the only way to make them see, then I'll make them see through their own blood." She quickly sheathed her claws and padded slowly towards Doepaw, who was talking to himself.

Doepaw sighed. "Why is Wingpaw so upset when Wingstar gets mentioned?" _Because,_ Wingpaw growled in her head. _Me and her are one, according to our Clanmates!_ "She should be honored to be named after a great warrior and leader. I sure wasn't."

 _Do I really want to do this?_ She questioned herself. _Of course I do. It's to make a difference around here._ Wingpaw pricked her ears forward.

"Most of the Clan mistook me for a she-cat because of my name. They would always say stuff like, "Oh, Doekit's such a cute name for a lovely she-kit!" or they'd say "She's sure to be popular when she gets older." Wingpaw should be proud, being named after a leader!" Doepaw spat, now baring his teeth. "Instead, she acts like it's the worst thing in the world that could happen to her! She doesn't get mistaken for being a different gender! She doesn't get judged by her name like I do!" His fur was bristling.

"Thank you, Doepaw. For those _lovely_ compliments." She half-growled half-purred. "If you wouldn't mind, I'd like to say my own piece." Wingpaw unsheathed her claws, now ready to strike him down. Doepaw snarled at her and then lunged towards her as well.

Wingpaw was able to dodge his attack just in time, but Doepaw quickly stopped and turned to slash at Wingpaw again. His claws raked her muzzle, spilling blood across her face. _I will not lose._ Wingpaw hissed at him and clawed at his eyes. He tried to jump out of the way, but he didn't make it out in time. Doepaw's shoulder was scratched at, now leaving a gash there.

"You have it easy!" Doepaw hissed. "You were named after a great cat, but you clearly don't deserve it! Wingstar wouldn't attack a Clanmate!"

The medicine cat's fur fluffed up. "Don't you say that name to my face!" She tackled Doepaw, making sure he couldn't escape from her hold on him. Wingpaw brought a claw up, ready to end this once and for all. "You will be the first, Doepaw. My own brother, sadly has a price to pay as well."

"You're madder than a fox in a fit!" Doepaw choked. The desperate gleam in his eyes almost made her want to spare him. Almost. Wingpaw brought her claw down and sliced Doepaw's throat. Blood stained her claws. _Finally,_ Wingpaw laughed internally. _One of them has paid._

"If you hated your old name so much, then I'll give you a new name." Wingpaw sneered. "How about Redthroat? After all, it describes you perfectly now." She licked the blood from her claws. "I'll be leaving now. I must go and wash my paws after the mess you made."

* * *

"Doepaw's dead!" screamed Parsleypaw, a newer apprentice. "Me and Mintypaw found him by the border with claw marks on his neck!" Wingpaw resisted the urge to grin smugly at the mention of his death. She knew it was twisted, yes, but he wouldn't've provided for TornadoClan all that much anyways. Isn't that what his precious _Wingstar_ wanted?

Parsleypaw and Mintypaw were only apprentices for a half-moon, and both of them got on Wingpaw's nerves. Parsleypaw was loud and obnoxious and her sister was just as annoying. Wingpaw hated Parsleypaw more, though. Mainly because she was padding after Doepaw and kept asking her about him. _This will be amusing._

All the cats in camp scrambled to them with questions. Wingpaw knew that she should be all worried about Doepaw's death, but she didn't care that much. He was going to die sooner or later. Wingpaw was in the medicine den now in her nest, pretending to sleep. _Hopefully they don't get suspicious._ Burnwhisker, Parsleypaw and Mintypaw came in the den. Wingpaw stretched and walked over to them.

"Can you give these two some thyme to calm them down?" Burnwhisker asked calmly, her voice filled with stiffness. Burnwhisker's yellow eyes were dark and angry, as if Wingpaw had done something to upset her. Wingpaw nodded carefully. "Come see me when you're done, Wingpaw." Burnwhisker left the den, leaving Parsleypaw and Mintypaw alone with her.

"Sit down in those nests over there." Wingpaw ordered them. They immediately obeyed and laid in the nests. The medicine cat apprentice looked in Stagwatcher's stores for some thyme. _But...why leave it at one when I could do three…?_ Wingpaw grabbed some thyme. She then lifted a rock up from the ground right below her paws, revealing her collection of poisons and deadly herbs. _These were just for show, but now it's time to put them to good use._

Smiling to herself, she gingerly grabbed some deadly nightshade. She already had the thyme, now she needed to add the thing to help them "sleep" to calm their nerves. Wingpaw swiftly picked one berry off of the deadly nightshade and squished it into a gooey paste. She smeared it onto the thyme enough so they wouldn't notice it at all.

The green leaves of the thyme were covered in deadly nightshade, but Wingpaw managed to hide it. She put the rock back down and looked back her patients. Parsleypaw and Mintypaw were talking about Doepaw, not remembering he's her brother. _Not like it matters, though. I killed him._

Wingpaw padded over to them, pushing the herbs over to them both. "Here, eat the thyme. I put some poppy seeds in there to help you sleep since you're so shaken up."

Parsleypaw beamed. "Thank you, Wingpaw!" She meowed cheerily while gulping up the thyme. _I didn't expect that they'd eat it up like that._

"Now just close your eyes, and you'll be fast asleep. May StarClan give you good dreams, Parsleypaw and Mintypaw." Wingpaw whispered gently, as if she was soothing a young kit. Both of them closed their eyes, not knowing what Wingpaw had done. The apprentices were to hunt with StarClan now. The scent of death reeked the medicine den.

"Time for the rosemary…" Wingpaw mumbled so no one could hear her. She quickly grabbed the herb and rubbed it onto both of their pelts. Soon the scent of death left the aroma, making the den smell clean and fresh again. "Much better." She padded out of the den, trying her best to look sad at Doepaw's death.

"Wingpaw. I said I wanted to talk to you." Burnwhisker's firm growl took Wingpaw by surprise. _What could she possibly want?_

They walked over into the main area that TornadoClan uses to catch prey. _Why are we here? And just what do you want from me?_ Wingpaw stopped suddenly.

"Why are you taking me here? I should be serving my Clan!" Wingpaw hissed at her. "Are you making sure I miss Doepaw's burial?!"

Burnwhisker softly growled. "And why would you care, Wingpaw?" She circled Wingpaw, her fur standing on end. "You've never been close with Doepaw since you were kits."

"That doesn't mean anything." Wingpaw narrowed her green eyes. "He is my brother. My kin. Shouldn't I be at his vigil?"

"You won't need to be," Burnwhisker chuckled, her laugh full of pain. "Because a murderer has no place among TornadoClan!" Burnwhisker swiped her forepaw at Wingpaw's eyes, attempting to blind her. Wingpaw narrowly dodged. _Cowardly move, Burnwhisker!_

"I'll be back!" Wingpaw snarled at Burnwhisker before scampering away to TornadoClan's border. _And you can count on it._ She looked back at Burnwhisker, who gave her a warning glare and headed back to TornadoClan, "Oh, like I care about your threats. Because you were going to be next anyways." Wingpaw stalked off of TornadoClan's territory, never to return. Or so they thought...

* * *

It had been three moons since Wingpaw's "exile" from TornadoClan. She didn't mind not having any Clanmates around anymore. In fact, she enjoyed it. _But it's hard hunting now, and I could really go for some food right now..._

Wingpaw was roaming a city nearby the forest where TornadoClan resides. _I still must plan how I will get my revenge…_ Suddenly something stopped her in her tracks.

"Hey, watch it!" A somewhat large yellow tabby tom snapped at her. His fur was bristling wildly, as bumping into someone could provoke a fight.

Wingpaw grumbled. "Well, _sorry_." Her tail was lashing, and her green eyes were glittering with anger. The tom barely stirred. Wingpaw noticed that he looked about eleven to twelve moons old. _Huh. I guess not all city cats are old._

"What are you doing here, anyways?" He asked, sounding a little nicer than before. "Shouldn't you be with your parents or housefolk?"

"How dare you accuse me of stooping to such things!" Wingpaw growled. "I was former medicine cat of TornadoClan, a savage group of murderers. I left as I could. They were monsters." She pretended to shiver at that last part.

His hazel eyes gleamed with sorrow. "I'm sorry to hear that. I know a place where you can stay safe so you can recover." He pulled Wingpaw closer to him. "My name's Kyle, by the way. Your's?"

"W-Wingpaw." Wingpaw muttered. _But can I trust you?_ She wanted to ask. But she kept her mouth shut out of fear of what he could do to her.

Kyle blinked slowly. "Don't worry. We'll make sure you recover from a horrible experience like that." He mewed. _And maybe you might be able to help me with my plan for revenge._

* * *

Wingkit was named after her older sister Wingstar, previous leader of TornadoClan. She's sick of being confused for Wingstar. And now it's high time she take this matter into her OWN paws... (Challenge for TorrentClan)


	2. The Words I Would Say - TorrentClan

Blurry. Bloody. Darkness. That's all I could remember. I looked at my paws, which were stained in blood. My claws were unsheathed, sticky from the dried up blood. Despite the uneasy feeling in my chest, I got up and looked at my surroundings. It was pitch-black. Nothing.

"W-Where am I…?" I called out into the darkness. There was no reply. The harsh, cold reality hit me like a stinging leaf-bare gust- this was the Place of No Stars.

I shook my head. "N-No. It can't be. I was a good cat, wasn't I…?" Pawsteps could be heard from behind me. I turned to see a grizzly golden brown tabby tom. He had a pale glow sticking to his pelt, giving me the impression that he's a StarClan cat.

"Don't be ridiculous, Lapwingstar. Your pride was your downfall." He meowed. The tom narrowed his green eyes. "Now that you're dead, hopefully LightClan will be able to live without a war happening every moon or so."

"No! I was a great leader! I helped strengthen them for the harsh moons to come! I lead them to their new home!" I cried, hoping that the tom would come to reason. He shook his head.

"You almost destroyed LightClan, Lapwingstar." He hissed. "Don't you remember Scrubs and Quince?"

* * *

" _Lapwingstar, please! That's my brother!" Scrubs, a young former loner yowled. He'd just joined LightClan to protect himself from the other Clans. "Quince didn't mean any harm to you!"_

 _I shook my head. "Quince betrayed his Clan. He had kits with Cherryleaf of BlazeClan. That harms our Clan enough." Scrubs was appalled._

" _But you didn't have to make him a prisoner!" Scrubs protested. I almost felt sorry for the young tom. But...the warrior code is the warrior code._

 _A low growl rumbled in my throat. "So you're saying I shouldn't punish him?" Scrubs nodded vigorously. Sneering, I circled the young ginger tabby tom. "Then I'll resort to punishing_ you _." I quickly leaped for him, my claws unsheathed. Scrubs tried to fight back, but due to his small size, he was defeated quickly._

" _P-Please, Lapwingstar!" Scrubs pleaded one last time. Rolling my eyes, I quickly did Scrubs in with a killing bite. The scent of death entered the den._

 _My claws sheathed and unsheathed like wild. "Maybe I could've let him live…? No. Then there would be no point to punishing Quince emotionally." I padded out of my den, dragging the body of Scrubs out. Cats looked scared and worried. I spat his scruff out of my mouth._

" _I-Is Scrubs d-dead?!" Quince wailed from afar._

 _I narrowed my amber eyes. "Quite so." I muttered. Throwing his body onto the pile, I growled angrily. "This traitor tried to kill me! And right after I was so shaken over one of my most trusted warriors betrayals…" I whipped my head over to Quince, hatred brimming in my eyes and guilt flooding Quince's. "And it's suspicious since the two of you are littermates!" Several cats yowled in agreement._

" _Let's kick him out!" A brown tabby warrior named Sungorse hissed._

 _Her mate Yellowsplotch snarled in agreement. "Those two traitors never should've stepped foot in LightClan!"_

" _Silence!" I ordered all of them. They all silenced and looked at me. "I've a much better punishment for this one._ Kill _him." The BlazeClan cats surrounded Quince, ready to taste blood. "LightClan, attack!" Quickly they lunged for Quince, trying to pry open his recent wounds from a MistClan patrol._

" _Die, traitor!" Sungorse spat, swiping her paws against Quince's muzzle. The young cat winced and tried to run away from his attacker. But Yellowsplotch jumped in front of him and lunged for Quince's neck. The killing blow landed, putting Quince down once he realized Quince was truly dead. Such pathetic warriors. And here I thought they had some potential._

" _And now- LightClan has been purged of the traitors destroying our reputation. Now, we shall rise from the ashes and blaze once more!" I cried, joyful at the two's deaths. Them being dead doesn't bother me. I never liked them anyways._

* * *

"You were a murderer at the finest, Lapwingstar." The golden brown tabby tom hissed at me, baring his teeth. "They didn't deserve to die."

I flicked my tail dismissively. "So what? They were in the way. They betrayed my Clan. They betrayed _StarClan_."

"Just like how Bristleshade betrayed StarClan by "killing" your mate Peachbloom?" He sneered. _Bristleshade._ That she-cat deserves to rot and fade into nothing here, not me! How could that murderer get into StarClan?

* * *

 _My cats swarmed around me as my Clan defended our territory from those mangy flea-pelts, MistClan. Sungorse and Yellowsplotch were fighting side by side, attacking a large brown tabby tom. Soon the tom was felled, landing on his side. For a second I thought he was knocked out, but then I realized he was dead. At least MistClan won't flourish when LightClan does!_

" _Lapwingstar." A harsh, cold meow diverted my attention away from the battle. I saw MistClan's leader, Acornstar glaring at me with intensity. "This was a cowardly attack.. Retreat now before I call reinforcements."_

" _You won't have to. You'll be dead by then anyways." I sneered before leaping for Acornstar. He dodged and tried to attack back at me. I crouched down, ready to fight. Acornstar ran closer to me, his claws unsheathed. Batting at his eyes, I clawed him harder and harder each time._

 _Acornstar was now blinded. This should be easy, as he_ is _on his last life. Quickly shoving him as hard as I could, I pushed him into the river that was nearby our border. Acornstar flailed in the water, begging for help. Not even I would beg like that for help. Dishonorable coward. Acornstar soon floated down to the bottom, seemingly giving up on surviving. I turned away to see Minnowstep, MistClan's deputy glowering me._

" _You fox-heart! You'll pay for this!" She yowled before leaping towards me. Because of her diminutive size, I grabbed her by the scruff and threw her away from me and the river. Once that was over with, I saw a young MistClan warrior named Bristleshade attacking my mate, Peachbloom. I charged over to her to help her as soon as I could._

" _Peachbloom!" I roared, ignoring everyone else. Peachbloom will_ not _die in this battle. I won't permit it. Bristleshade and Peachbloom were locked in what seemed like an eternal struggle._

 _Peachbloom clawed at Bristleshade's pelt, trying to get the young she-cat away from her. Bristleshade was unfazed as she swiped her claws at Peachbloom. Peachbloom jumped back, trying not to get hit._

" _Peachbloom, NO!" I yowled while rushing over to them, too late to make a difference. Peachbloom fell down in the lake beside Bristleshade, yowling in terror. I tried to grab her paw, but it Peachbloom couldn't grab on. The hollow feeling in my chest deepened as her blood-curdling screams grew louder._

" _I-I didn't…" Bristleshade mewed in horror. I whipped my head to face her, my pelt bristling wildly. She shrunk back in fear._

" _You murderer!" I hissed before performing a forepaw blow to her face. Just before I managed to hit her, something seemed to be holding me back. I looked behind myself to see Yellowsplotch glaring at me._

" _The battle's been won, Lapwingstar. Don't." He growled. I glowered him while hissing in his face. He seemed unfazed. I stomped past him, my claws still unsheathed._

" _LightClan will go for now." I warned the pathetic MistClan warriors. Catching a shaken Bristleshade in my vision, I snarled at her. "We're not finished yet."_

* * *

"You don't deserve StarClan." The golden brown tom hissed. Quickly I realized who it was. Yellowsplotch. "Peachbloom would be ashamed of you. And she _is_." Yellowsplotch growled.

I chuckled. "Why should I care anymore? StarClan is overrated anyways." Yellowsplotch hissed at me one more time before stalking away. "Oh please, like I care. Soon you won't have a precious StarClan to run back home to."

* * *

Lapwingstar has been sent to the Place of No Stars. He's confused, until a familiar cat from his life reminds him of his nefarious deeds... (Challenge for TorrentClan)


	3. Mama, What's Love? - TorrentClan

"Twyla and Heron, knock it off!" Penny meowed sternly. Her hazel eyes gleamed with annoyance, but Violet could tell she truly wasn't angry. _She's just worried about us since Marsh died…_ "Honestly! You're apprentices, for the stars sake!"

Twyla rolled her light green eyes. "Oh come on, Mom! Can't we mess around for just a little bit longer?" _We've got to go to battle practice soon, though._ "Pretty please with ten mousetails on top?" Twyla didn't wait for Penny's answer, however. Instead she tackled Heron who was now sharing a piece of prey with Hazel, another apprentice.

"Gah! Twyla! Get off of me!" Heron yelped, with a mix of giggling in her mew well. "Twyla!"

"Twyla, I think that's enough." Violet meowed. Her reminder was in vain once she realized Twyla and Heron were play-fighting. "Twyla!" She hissed. Twyla and Heron immediately stopped to look at her.

"Aw, you're such a grumpy ol' badger." Twyla sighed. She got up and shook her brownish-gray fur. "Only the stars know why you managed to become best friends with _Ivy_ , for goodness sake."

Ivy was a new fighter in the Ten Flames, who seemingly passed her assessment with ease. _What they don't know was that_ I _helped her pass that assessment because she's expecting kits._ Violet and Ivy had gotten along pretty well, now to the point of being best friends. _Maybe I can coax Ivy into telling me how to pass the assessment._

"Hey, Violet. I think it's time for battle training." Heron mewed breezily before padding towards the exit of camp. Twyla sat down next to Hazel and began eating on the water vole with her, Violet held her tongue; she shouldn't be dawdling. She rushed towards the exit to hurry to battle practice. _I can't be late!_

Once Violet was out of the camp, she was greeted by Silverpaw, one of the younger apprentices of the Ten Flames. _Ugh, I do_ not _like him._ Silverpaw was a rogue before coming to the Ten Flames, along with his littermates Starpaw and Hazel. _If I'm being completely honest, he's the most annoying out of all the cats in camp. I'm dead serious._ Silverpaw had the most unpleasant knack of being both airheaded at times and then becoming rude and snappy at others. _Why couldn't he lose his leg elsewhere?_ The fact that he was a tripod cat made Violet dislike him even more. It made their leader Maple pity him and his littermates and brought them into their group. _If I had the choice, they'd be back on the road!_

"O-Oh, hi Violet." Silverpaw stuttered underneath his breath. His silver eyes were mixed with several emotions Violet couldn't put a paw on. _Is he alright?_ "Let's go find our mentors then, alright?" Silverpaw padded off without her. Growling to herself, Violet raced up to him. Her paws hit the slippery rocks like lightning; her pace couldn't be outmatched now. As she kept running, her left paw tripped over her right paw. _Oh no!_ No longer having any control over where her body go, she slipped into the nearby river. Water dampened her pelt, making it difficult to stay up. However, her head was high enough to call for help.

Violet wailed as loud as she could. "H-Help!" She yowled. Pawsteps could be heard coming closer and closer. Soon the dark ginger tabby pelt of Silverpaw came into view. "Silverpaw!"

Silverpaw jumped down as fast as he could, He then grabbed her by the scruff, struggling to pull her out. Violet pushed herself up, trying to get out of the water as fast as she could. Soon she was out of the river, breathing heavily. Violet looked up at Silverpaw. _H-He saved me…_

"Are you alright, Violet?" Silverpaw asked, his voice edged with concern. Violet could feel her consciousness drifting away from herself as Silverpaw's cries grew softer and softer in the distance. _I can't hold on any longer…_

* * *

Violet wearily opened her eyes, surprised to find herself in the Healer's den. _Wasn't I just at the riverbank with Silverpaw?_ She glanced around the den to see what was happening. Holly and Jayson were sorting out the herbs together, occasionally gazing lovingly into each others eyes. _I would never coo like a dove over any tom!_ Holly and Jayson were the newest healers, so it was kind of hard for Violet to believe they're mates now. Violet felt someone's tail brush up against her fur. She turned to her right to see Silverpaw curled up right next to her. _By the stars, why's he here?!_

"He fell asleep while waiting for you to wake up, Violet." Starpaw informed her. His pale silver eyes gleamed with amusement. "Silverpaw insisted on staying with you. He was quite worried, you know."

"Silverpaw worried about _me_? As if." Violet snorted. Her eyelids drooped a little, but she was determined to stay up. _I've gotta stay up._ "When can I leave?"

Starpaw rolled his eyes. "Whenever you want, but I think Silverpaw has confined you to the medicine den." Violet could feel Silverpaw unconsciously place his left forepaw on her shoulders. _Is he always this clingy in his sleep?_

"Oh, Violet! You're okay!" Violet's ears pricked towards the entrance of the den at the sound of her mother's voice. Penny's pelt was bristling wildly. "Don't ever do that- oh. I see you're busy." She purred at that last bit.

"What do you mean, 'busy'?" Violet asked, her voice growing with annoyance. "I'm just sitting here."

Penny flicked her tail towards Silverpaw. "With a tom." _How could she even suggest that?! I'd never be with him- I'd never be with anyone for that matter!_

"Mmph...Violet…?" Silverpaw mumbled. He slowly blinked his eyes open. "You're awake…?" Violet bit back a sharp retort and nodded, her eyes full of irritation.

"Oh yes, and Silverpaw, Maple is calling for a group meeting. She specifically wants _you_ there." Penny chuckled, her hazel eyes bright with joy. Silverpaw looked a little more excited. _Is he becoming a fully fledged fighter?_ Penny walked out of the den, leaving Violet and Silverpaw behind.

"D-Do you w-wanna c-come with?" Silverpaw stuttered awkwardly, his pelt feeling hot beside Violet's.

Violet nodded. "Sure. Lead the way, Silverpaw." She purred. Silverpaw smiled, his tail flicking back and forth. _Is he really that happy that I'm coming?_ "Come on then, Silverpaw."

"O-Oh! Oh yeah!" Silverpaw absent-mindedly meowed. _I hate to admit it, but he's absolutely adorable when he forgets anything._ "Let's go." He got up from the nest and Violet copied him. They walked over to the clearing in camp, where most of the cats were. Violet could see Twyla and Heron in the crowd, snickering in her face. _Why're they laughing?_ She felt Silverpaw's tail wrap around her. _Why's he being so clingy right now?_ Quickly he drew his tail away when Maple began yowling from Perched Rock.

"All cats part of the Ten Flames, young and old, please gather under Perched Rock for a group meeting!" Maple called from the rock. Several more cats gathered, awaiting the news. "Today I'm appointing a new fighter. Silverpaw, please step forward." _Silverpaw? Okay, that's kind of obvious…_

"He's been an apprentice less moons than we have." An older apprentice named Tristan muttered to himself. Twyla, who was sitting next to him nodded in agreement, a moonstruck glint in her eyes. Twyla didn't say anything but sigh dreamily. _Twyla has issues._

"From this day forward, you are an official and fully fledged fighter. You'll be known as Silverfire from this day on. We honor your courage and passion." Maple meowed firmly. Silverfire smiled awkwardly, shifting his paws.

"Silverfire! Silverfire!" Everyone cheered before congratulating his new name. Violet padded towards him. Silverfire turned towards her, hopefulness sparkling in his silver gaze.

"Congratulations, Silverp- oops! I mean Silverfire!" Violet purred, her voice cracking a little. Silverfire chuckled and licked her ear.

"It's okay, everyone's still used to calling me Silverpaw!" Silverfire laughed. _I half expected him to snap at me. Why's he being so friendly to me?_

Violet playfully prodded his shoulder. "It's alright. By the stars, your name is ironic!" Silverfire purred, his silver eyes gleaming with joy.

"I know! I earned it by jumping in a river, which is full of water- not fire!" Silverfire joked. Violet gently licked Silverfire's muzzle. _Oh, what am I doing?! I shouldn't be acting this way!_

"Violet, I didn't know you liked Silverfire!" Violet and Silverfire turned to see Twyla and Heron padding up to them. "You've never really warmed up to any tom, really." Twyla teased lightly.

"I do not have time for a mate or kits! My attention must be focused on becoming a leader one day." Violet firmly meowed. _Why should I take my attention away from my goal of becoming a leader? It probably wouldn't be worth it in the long run._

Silverfire purred. "Well, Violet's got a passion for something!" He playfully nudged her shoulder. "Looks like Tristan's got some good competition."

Heron snickered. "Yep, and he's already got Twyla padding after him!" Twyla playfully tackled Heron, messing up their once clean pelts. _I'd never fall for any tom._ She briefly looked over in Silverfire's direction. His dark ginger tabby pelt was long and messy, and his silver eyes soft and gentle. _No. Not even an extremely handsome tom either._ Violet resisted the urge to entwine her tail with his. _B-But maybe...no. Why am I feeling so weird?_

"I-I need to go. _Now_." Violet muttered before running off to the freshkill pile, where her mother was picking out a piece of prey. _Maybe she can explain._ "M-Mom, can we talk?" Penny nodded, her mouth stuffed with a fresh squirrel. She walked over to an empty part of the clearing and dropped her squirrel on the ground. Violet followed after her and sat in front of her.

"Are you hungry?" Penny asked gently. Violet nodded and took a bite out of the freshkill. "So, what's wrong? I've never seen you so flustered before."

Violet sighed after swallowing her first bite. "It's- I- A tom." She stuttered. Penny's eyes glowed with amusement. "It's not funny, mom!"

"Oh, alright. Who is it? Tristan- wait, nope, that's Twyla. Silverfire, perhaps?" Penny purred, amused by Violet's squeamishness.

"S-Silverfire." Violet grumbled. "I can't be acting like this, mom! I'll never be a leader if that happens!"

Penny's soft hazel eyes gleamed with understanding. "Maple is mates with Spider and they had Tristan. Yet she's a leader, isn't that right?" Violet nodded. "Well, then. There's your answer. Love is a blessing, Violet. It makes you much stronger than you know."

* * *

"Can I get Silverfire, Violet, Hazel and Ivy on a hunting patrol please?" Maple yowled from across the clearing. Violet padded towards the camp exit to greet Silverfire and Ivy at the exit.

"Hey. Where's Hazel?" Violet mewed. Ivy didn't bother answering, while Silverfire gestured to the freshkill pile with his tail.

Silverfire laughed a little. "She's too busy with her mate to notice anything." Violet turned to see Hazel and Spiritpaw, the only apprentice in the Ten Flames sharing a rather scrawny mouse, their tails entwined. _By the stars, why is it that they never seem to separate?_

"Oh, I can't wait for you to finish your mediator training, Spiritpaw." Hazel purred silkily. "Then we can officially be mates." Spiritpaw gently licked her forehead, purring as well.

"Me too." Spiritpaw murmured. He looked over his shoulder to share a brief gaze with Violet. Quickly turning back to Hazel, he mewed, "I think your patrol is waiting." Hazel quickly got up, embarrassed. _She should be._

"Oops! I love you, Spiritpaw." Hazel meowed quickly.

Spiritpaw smiled at her. "I love you too, Hazel." Hazel ran over to the patrol, who was getting more impatient by every heartbeat.

"Sorry! It's just really hard to-" Hazel apologized at once.

Ivy growled. "Take your eyes off of Spiritpaw, we know." _Jeez, Ivy's not in a very good mood, is she?_ "Let's at least try to find some prey in this horrible leaf-bare." The four cats padded out of the camp to be greeted by a harsh gust of wind.

"Gah! I hate this cold air! It's stupid, annoying and freezing!" Hazel whined. Ivy shot her an angry glare, which seemed to shut Hazel up for a little while, but not for long.

Silverfire grinned weakly, his legs trembling. "What's the point of complaining if you can't change it?" Hazel rolled her hazel eyes.

"I'm not letting this weather be more annoying than me." Hazel muttered. "And as you can see, Ivy seems to think the same." Ivy hissed at them, but didn't say anything. _Woah, I've never seen Ivy_ this _mad._ "Alright, alright. I'll shut up." Silverfire padded right next to Violet, his warm body heat keeping her warm. _Why's he getting so close? But I'm not complaining. I'll take any warmth I can get._

Silverfire leaned a tiny bit closer into her. "Erm, V-Violet? C-Can I a-ask you a question?" _What's up with him? I haven't seen him so nervous around me since that time when he saved my life._

"You already did." Violet lightly teased him. "Just kidding. Yes?" Silverfire's pelt started bristling a little. _Is he that nervous?_

"I-I know you said that you had no time for a mate, b-but...I love you, Violet. I was wondering if we could be mates." Silverfire mumbled. "I-I mean, you don't have to if you don't want to…" _Silverfire's asking_ me _to be his mate? I thought that he'd go after someone much better, anyways… But should I reject him? I still want to be leader._ Penny's words echoed in her head.

" _Love is a blessing, Violet. It makes you much stronger than you know."_ Violet fought back a pang of grief for Penny, who'd died of Greencough right before her fighter ceremony. _She was right. Love did make me stronger. And I_ do _love Silverfire._

Violet licked his muzzle. "I'd be honored to be your mate, Silverfire. I love you too." Silverfire purred, intertwining his tail with Violet's. _Thank you, Penny. Thank you for helping me see the truth about love._

* * *

"Mom!" Violet opened her eyes to see Firegaze and River, her two kittens she had with Silverfire. Firegaze's pelt looked exactly like her father's; dark ginger with long tabby stripes and messy fur. Her eyes were a bright amber, just like Violet's. River was a pale gray and white tabby with short fur like Violet and had Silverfire's silver eyes. _They're so beautiful._

River's silver eyes gleamed with anger. "Firegaze was being a big mouse-brain again! She pretended to be you so she climbed onto Perched Rock _again_. Dylan had to get her down again!"

"Did not! And Dylan wouldn't be able to do that! He's only two moons older than us!" Firegaze spat back.

"That's a _big_ difference, Firegaze! He's almost six moons, idiot! We're only four! How can you not see that he's bigger than us?!" River hissed.

Firegaze ran over to Violet, hiding herself under her tail. "Mommy, River's being a jerk!"

"I don't know how I put up with you two." Violet sighed, half irritated and half amused. "Now I know how my mother felt. River, your sister isn't an idiot. And Firegaze, what did I tell you about climbing up there? It's not safe!"

"It's like Firegaze _wants_ Dylan to save her all the time!" River teased. "I wouldn't be half surprised if she wants him to be her mate!" Firegaze snarled and leaped at him. _Oh dear. I'm afraid you hit a nerve, River._

"Both of you, knock it off!" Violet scolded them. "Why can't you two get along for once? River, go play Tristan for a little bit. I'm _sure_ he'd _love_ your company." River muttered to himself, but walked out of the nursery. Firegaze looked over in Violet's direction.

"Thanks, mom. He keeps teasing me about Dylan, and I don't like it!" Firegaze huffed. _This certainly new. What's wrong with her and Dylan?_

"Why's that? You don't happen to like him, do you?" Violet laughed a little. Firegaze smiled.

"Yes, a lot- NO! I certainly don't like him! No way!" Firegaze snapped. _Oh, you poor kit. It's hard having a kitten-crush on someone, isn't it?_ Violet gently licked her daughter's forehead. "I don't!"

"Aw, I believe you." Violet purred. _Not really._ "Why don't you go play with the other kits?"

"MOM! I JUST SAID I DON'T LIKE DYLAN!" Firegaze hissed. _She really has my attitude, doesn't she?_

"I know, but there's also Blaze. She's fine, right?" Violet asked. Firegaze rolled her amber eyes and trudged out of the nursery, heading to the freshkill pile where Dylan was standing. _You're not really helping your case._

"Difficult dealing with that one, eh?" Holly, Dylan's mother snickered. Violet nodded. "Just like her mother. You've really changed, Violet. I didn't even expect you to get a mate or have kits."

Violet purred. "Well, you can thank Penny. She's the one who convinced me otherwise." _Penny, I hope you're still watching over us…_

* * *

Violet is an apprentice in the Ten Flames, a group hidden among the four Clans. Her main goal in life is to be a leader of her group, nothing more. So when she starts falling in love, she goes to her mother Penny for advice. (Challenge for TorrentClan)


	4. Watching out the Window - TorrentClan

Holly leaped onto the window of her housefolk's countertop, her paws lifting her gently into the air. _I've done this enough times to know precisely where to land my paws._ The dark tortoiseshell padded softly along the surface, careful not to knock anything over. She gracefully sat down on her haunches, with the window right in front of her. _This is the best thing about being a house cat. The window. But what's even better is staring out the window!_ Holly's eyes narrowed, watching every movement out of her reach.

From the corner of her eye, she could make out a starling chattering merrily away to all the other starlings. Meanwhile a squirrel darted between the bushes, its pouches filled with acorns. _Is autumn coming sooner this year? I hope not. The cold really bugs me._ Holly swallowed the thought and continued watching the outside world. The tree's leaves were a dark crimson or a chocolate brown, shivering in the chilly blast of air from the sky. _I'm glad I'm not out there._

"Holly, what do you think you're doing?!" Holly jerked her head around to see her mother, Sarah, glaring intently at her. "Stay away from that window!" _But why? It's cool._ "That's how I met your… _father_." Sarah choked, her voice filled with pain. "Get back down here."

"But mom-" Holly protested, her meow pleading. Sarah shot Holly a cold glare before stalking over to her basket. _I'm not budging._ Holly turned back to look out the window. _Why can't I just watch? It's amazing out there._ She glanced back at Sarah, who was now asleep in the basket. _Cranky she-cat._ Rustle. Holly whipped her head towards the window, hoping to find what had caused the noise. A white tabby cat leaped out of the bushes, chasing for a squirrel. _Is that...a wild cat?_

The white tabby missed the squirrel, making it run up a nearby tree. The cat spat something in anger, but Holly couldn't tell what it was. The wild cat shook to its paws and looked up. Holly winced. _Can it see me?_ It looked Holly directly in their eyes, their light blue eyes glittering. _Maybe I should've listened Sarah after all!_ The cat and her gaped at each other, which to Holly felt as if it lasted an eternity. Soon it padded away, their light blue eyes gleaming teasingly in a playful matter. _What was that about?_ Holly leaped down onto the cold tiled floor, relishing the stony feel to it. _Grass is a lot nicer to walk on._ She lightly walked over to the door flap leading outside the kitchen. _I'm going to see what this is about._ Padding outside of the house, she was greeted by a freezing gust of wind. _M-Maybe I should go back in…_

"Oh. I see kittypets have some guts after all." Holly realized the white tabby was talking to her. From what she could tell from their scent, the tabby was a tom. Her fur bristled. _How dare he suggest I have no guts?!_

"K-Kittypets can have guts!" Holly snarled. Half expecting the wild cat to attack her, she took a step back. Instead he grinned and laughed. _What's wrong with you?_

"Well, I know for sure that you do!" He laughed. "I'm Jayson. I live over there." Jayson pointed his tail tip towards the area with the large rocks and flowing river. _How come I've never seen that before?_ "You are…?"

"H-Holly." She meowed, her fur standing on end. _What is this cat doing here anyways?_ "Why're you here?"

"Well, I strayed a _little_ too far from my territory while I was hunting. I saw you staring out the window, and I guessed you saw something you liked out there. So then I decided to you a favor and come talk to you myself." Jayson purred. His light blue eyes gleamed in amusement. "You're quite beautiful for a she-cat, I must say." Jayson complemented her, now sitting right beside her. _Is he flirting with me?_ "And fiesty. I like that. You know Holly, there's not many cats in my group the Ten Flames that I like. You, on the other paw I like. Can I come tomorrow? I'd like to get to know you better." _S-Should I? I-I don't even know him…but he does seem quite nice. Better than Sarah for sure._

"F-Fine. But don't do or say anything you'll regret, Jayson." Holly snapped. Jayson chuckled to himself before licking Holly on the cheek and padding away. _I-I…_

"See you tomorrow!" He called to her. _He wants to see me? Why?_ Holly shook her head and sighed. There was no point in staying out here. She walked back into the cat-flap to be greeted by Sarah.

Sarah glowered her. "You imbecile! Why'd you go outside?! It's freezing out there, plus you could've ran into-"

"I'm not in the mood." Holly hissed at the cat she called mother. Padding towards the window, she leaped back onto the countertop. _Jayson's much better than that snotty old fleabag._ The cold, hard glass reflecting her face made her step back a few paces, but not enough to make her fall off of the counter. _Sarah's always said I take more after my father…and called me a monster for it._ Holly's fur bristled in anger. _I'm not him. But Sarah acts as if I'm him. S-Should I…leave? Where would I go to, then? Where Jayson lives? No. It's too dangerous._

"Hi, Sarah!" A young tom mewed. Holly turned to see her cousin Spirit, who was an albino tom with striking red eyes. _His red eyes scare me, actually._ Spirit looked up in Holly's direction. "Oh, hi Holly! Whatcha doing?" Holly forced her fur to lie flat, not wanting to scare her kin. _He's the only decent cat in this household. His brother Delmar is a jerk, and before their mom died she just flat out ignored me._

"Do you want to see?" Holly asked, her whiskers twitching. Spirit nodded and leaped onto the counter, sitting right next to Holly. Sarah grumbled under her breath.

"You both are messed up in the head for looking out there. At least Delmar has some brains." Sarah hissed, her voice filled with scorn.

"Ooh, this is cool!" There's all of that stuff out there, and there's that and that-" Spirit beamed, his squeaky meow echoing throughout the house.

Holly's whiskers twitched in amusement. "Okay, I can tell you're excited." Spirit nodded aggressively, his red eyes gleaming with excitement. Holly quickly glanced behind herself to see if Sarah was watching them. _Good. She's gone._ "Spirit, do you wanna hear about something that happened to me today?" The albino tom smiled, his tail lashing eagerly. "Well, today I met a cat who lives in the wild. His name is Jayson."

"That's awesome! Can we go see him?" Spirit meowed, his voice bubbling with vim. _Tomorrow, maybe._

"Tomorrow. You can come with me." Holly sighed. Spirit purred, wrapping his tail around his paws. _Hopefully Jayson won't mind seeing an extra kittypet, as he calls us._

* * *

"So you've finally arrived, Jayson." Holly grumbled. Jayson chuckled awkwardly and licked his shoulder fur. "I've been waiting all day!"

"It isn't easy getting away from Healer duties, lemme tell you…" Jayson sighed, a hint of laughter in his mew. He glanced at Spirit, who was standing beside her. "Who's this? A friend of yours?" Holly nodded. She opened her jaws to speak, but was cut off by Spirit.

"Holly told me about you yesterday! She said you live in the wild and that's SO COOL! Do you catch your own food? Do you really fight each other? How do you manage winter?" Spirit burst out the words faster than a lightning strike, which seemed to put Jayson off a little bit. Jayson was a little overwhelmed, but didn't rebuke him. "Oh, I'm Spirit by the way."

"W-Well, yes, yes and we have dens that are similar to your Twoleg dens." Jayson stuttered. He glanced back in Holly's direction. Her pelt was prickling, and her dark green eyes glittered with nervousness. "Hmm? What's wrong, Holly?" He asked gently. _I need to tell him. I want to go with him to his group. I can't handle living with Sarah any longer._

"J-Jayson, I…don't want to be a kittypet anymore." Holly choked out the words. "My mother is always glaring at me because of my father, and I don't want to deal with it anymore. I'm coming with you to your home." Jayson opened his jaws to protest, but Holly cut him off. "Whether you like it or not."

Jayson sighed. "I guess I'm not going to be able to change your mind. What about Spirit here? How'd he feel if you just up and left him?" Spirit looked over in Holly's direction. _I can't leave him here…Sarah doesn't like him that much, either._

"He's coming with too." Holly growled. Spirit brightened up, his tail swishing back and forth. "Any problems with that?" Jayson narrowed his eyes, but didn't say anything. "Good. Take us to your group." He trudged slowly in the direction that he'd pointed to yesterday. "And no dilly-dallying."

* * *

Holly wearily blinked her eyes open. It had been moons since she'd joined the Ten Flames along with Spirit, who was now named Spiritmask. She lay in her nest, her flank synchronizing with her steady breathing. _I'm now a full Healer of the Ten Flames along with Jayson. I'm so glad I left when I did…_ Holly looked down at the little kit who was suckling her for milk. _Me and Jayson's kit. Dylan._ The young tom-kit was a white tabby like his father and had a fluffy pelt like Holly. They weren't sure on his eye color yet, since most kits' eyes are blue when they're newly born.

"Holly? May I come in?" That was Spiritmask's meow. Holly nodded as the albino tom padded into the nursery. A small kit was dangling from his jaws. The kit smelt like a she-cat, and it was clear this kit wasn't born to one of the cats in the Ten Flames. _Then who…?_ The little she-kit was a brownish gray tabby, and by the looks of it she was no older than Dylan. "Me and Hazel found this adorable little bundle while we were out hunting. She's really weak and it looks like she's been half starved to death. Hazel would love to feed her, but, as we've discussed-"

"Hazel's barren. Yep, I'm well aware." Holly murmured. "Are you asking me to raise her?"

"N-No, that's not what I meant. You see, me and Hazel really wanted to have kits of our own. But since she can't have any, she can't give milk. What I'm asking is that you nurse her, and me and Hazel will be her parents." Spiritmask explained. _That makes sense._ She stared at the tiny helpless kit, who was wailing at the top of her lungs. _Aw..._ "Please, Holly."

"I'll do it for you, Spiritmask." Holly whispered warmly. Spiritmask set the little kitten down nearby Dylan. The she-kit began feeding at once. _She must've been really hungry._ "What did you name her?"

"M-Me and Hazel named her Blaze, if that's alright with you…" Spiritmask mumbled. _That's a wonderful name._

Holly nodded. "It's a beautiful name." She looked back up to Spiritmask. "You know, this reminds me of when we were young. I'm glad I kept watching out the window."

* * *

Holly is a young kittypet, along with her cousin Spirit. One day while she's watching out the window, she meets a young wild cat named Jayson. After this meeting, she begins thinking about her life as a kittypet and her overprotective mother Sarah. Her heart longs for freedom, but is she willing to take that risk? (Challenge for TorrentClan, takes place in my Flames of Fury AU)


	5. I Can Love - TorrentClan

"His name will be Asterkit." A soft and gentle voice mewed. The warmth that was radiating from the body beside the little kitten gave him the urge to come closer. "I-Is that okay, Jackalstrike?" The voice murmured. Jackalstrike, the tom snorted.

"Sure, let's make our son have a she-cat's name. Perfect." Jackalstrike sneered. He poked the young tom with his long claw, making the kitten mewl loudly.

"Jackalstrike!" The she-cat snapped. "You'll hurt him!" Jackalstrike growled at her, baring his teeth. She flattened her ears and looked down at her paws.

Jackalstrike sniffed the young kit disdainfully. "He should be named something strong. Not a weak name like Asterkit." He hissed. "His name will be Copperkit. That is final." The young queen mumbled something under her breath, but didn't say anything more. The tom-kit pawed his way towards his mother, yearning for milk. "I'm watching you, Petalpaw. Don't screw up my kit." Jackalstrike padded out of the nursery, his fur bristling. Petalpaw licked her young kit's fur.

"Your name _will_ be Asterkit, little one."

* * *

Asterkit blinked his eyes open. _Is Petalpaw out training again?_ He couldn't feel Petalpaw's fur brushing against his, so that must've been the case. _Why am I here? I shouldn't've been born._ Asterkit glanced at Peonypatch, who was watching Aridkit and Heraldkit, his denmates. Peonypatch glanced up at him.

"Oh, Copperkit. You've finally woken up, I see. Would you like to play with Aridkit and Heraldkit over here?" Peonypatch asked, her eyes a flurry of emotions. _Do they really want to play with me?_ He thought to himself. Heraldkit grimaced at him.

"Ew, no! He's a kit of that apprentice!" Heraldkit squeaked. "I wanna play with normal kits, not him!" _I knew they wouldn't want to play with me…_ Peonypatch cuffed Heraldkit on the ear. "But it's true! Petalpaw had kits with someone, and it could be a cat from out of the Clan! We can't trust him!" Aridkit narrowed her eyes at him, her pale yellow eyes studying him. _W-What is she looking at?_ Asterkit wanted to say, but he couldn't bring himself to say the words. Aridkit blinked and looked back over to Heraldkit.

"I will play with him, then. You can't be judging him for Petalpaw's actons." Aridkit mewed, her tone stern. She padded over to Asterkit, who was trembling in fear. _Is she lying?_ "What? Does it look like I'm going to hurt you?" _A little bit._ "Come on, let's find some moss so we can play mossball." Aridkit walked ahead of him, heading towards Petalpaw's nest. Asterkit's paws quivered in amazement. _Someone actually wants to play with me?_ His ears pricked to hear pawsteps padding into the nursery. Asterkit turned to the den's exit to see Jackalstrike, the cat Petalpaw called his father. _How is he my father? I look nothing like him._ Jackalstrike glanced at Peonypatch.

"May I borrow Copperkit for a while?" He asked, his voice edged with irritation. Peonypatch nodded, her tail lashing angrily. _Does Peonypatch not like him? I don't blame her, either way._ Jackalstrike grabbed Asterkit by the scruff and took him outside of the nursery. Asterkit blinked, his eyes unprepared for the blinding light that shone in his eyes. _It's too bright!_ Jackalstrike padded behind the nursery and set him down, causing Asterkit to yelp. "Hush it, worm!" He hissed. Asterkit looked up at his father, trembling in fear. "You will not show these emotions again, got it? No more fear, reluctance, anger...none of them. They'll only get in the way of becoming the perfect warrior."

"W-Why are you telling me this?" Asterkit stuttered. Jackalstrike snarled at him, baring his teeth. _Did I do something wrong?_

Jackalstrike hissed at his son. "You will not question me, Copperkit! You will be the greatest warrior to ever live, but only if you follow my command." He snapped. Asterkit whimpered to himself. _I don't want this! Why is he doing this?!_ "And I will be watching your every step along the way, _Copper_ kit." _My name's Asterkit!_

"All cats old enough to catch their own prey, gather around the Mossrock for a Clan meeting!" Asterkit's ears pricked. It was Applestar, leader of StormClan. Jackalstrike grabbed him by the scruff once again and padded over to where the Mossrock stood, in the middle of camp. _What's happening?_ Jackalstrike dropped him on the ground, making Asterkit scamble to his paws to get back up. _Why'd he do that?_ Asterkit glanced around camp. He could spot Peonypatch and Petalpaw standing in front of the nursery. Aridkit and Heraldkit were sitting beside Peonypatch, Heraldkit's eyes gleaming with excitement and Aridkit looking indifferent. _Are they becoming apprentices today?_ "Today we're welcoming three new apprentices into the Clan! Copperkit, Aridkit and Heraldkit, please step forward!" Jackalstrike nudged Asterkit to step forwards into the small clearing in the middle of the Clan. Without a word, Asterkit stepped forward. Soon Aridkit and Heraldkit were standing beside him, both of them looking up at Applestar.

"Oh, I can't wait!" Heraldkit whispered, resisting the urge to scream it aloud. Aridkit rolled her eyes and continued to stare at the Mossrock. _Is something up with them?_

"Copperkit, Aridkit and Heraldkit, you've all reached the age of six moons. And like tradition goes, you will learn under the wing of a warrior." Applestar meowed. "Aridkit, from this day on you shall be Aridpaw! Your mentor shall be Ashendapple. Heraldkit, from this day on you shall be Heraldpaw! Your mentor shall be Dawnwhisker. And Copperkit, from this day on you shall be known as Copperpaw! Your mentor shall be Jackalstrike." _What? NO!_

"Aridpaw! Heraldpaw!" The cats cheered. _Wait, what about me?_ Applestar narrowed her eyes. "Copperpaw."They flatly grumbled. _My name should be Asterpaw, not Copperpaw…_ Soon the crowd dispersed, leaving Asterpaw behind with Jackalstrike. Aridpaw and Heraldpaw were already out of camp with their mentors. _What is Jackalstrike going to make me do?_ Asterpaw's ears pricked to hear the sound of light pawsteps padding towards him. He turned to see Petalpaw, his mother. She licked his forehead, purring softly.

"Oh, my precious kit! You're finally an apprentice!" She whispered, her voice bubbling with happiness. "I don't care if the Clan knows you as Copperpaw, you'll always be Asterpaw to me."

"Get away from my apprentice, Petalpaw." Jackalstrike hissed at the young she-cat. Petalpaw winced, her eyes flashing with hurt. "You're not worthy of being near Copperpaw, you disgrace to StormClan." She padded away into the nursery, her tail drooping low. He turned back to Asterpaw, glaring at him with contempt. "We're battle training. Let's go." The two cats padded out of camp, catching curious stares from their Clanmates. _Ignore them, Asterpaw. They don't matter to you now._ Soon they were in the training hollow, which spread wide in the clearing. "You'll be facing me. Now get ready, I won't hesitate." Asterpaw weakly walked over to the opposite side of Jackalstrike, his legs trembling. _I'm a new apprentice! How does he expect me to fight?!_ Jackalstrike didn't waste any time. He leaped for Asterpaw, his claws unsheathed. Asterpaw darted to his left, narrowly dodging his mentor's attack. _Warriors don't use their claws in battle training…do they?_

Asterpaw skidded to a halt once he realized that Jackalstrike had expected him to run. Jackalstrike glared at him, his amber eyes glittering with anger. "A true warrior doesn't run! They fight!" He hissed. Jackalstrike jumped at him once again, and this time Asterpaw was too frightened to move. _He's going to kill me. I'm going to die an apprentice._ His father's claws scraped flesh off of his right cheek, making him yowl in pain. _This isn't a real battle! I shouldn't be fighting like this!_ "Shut up and fight like a warrior, Copperpaw!" Asterpaw hissed at his mentor and leaped for him, unsheathing his claws. Jackalstrike sidestepped Asterpaw's attempt to fight back, causing him to fall face first on the ground. "Pathetic. Try it again." Asterpaw wearily blinked. _I doubt this is how Aridpaw and Heraldpaw would be taught how to fight._

"J-Jackalstrike, my paws hurt…" Asterpaw mumbled, trying to keep from falling over on his side and giving up already. Jackalstrike scratched his right cheek again, in the same exact spot. "N-Nevermind, my paws stopped hurting."

Jackalstrike snorted. "Whatever. This is enough for today." He stalked away in the direction of camp. "Our training stays between us. A real warrior doesn't complain, either." Asterpaw closed his eyes, sighing to himself. _What if I_ want _to complain? What if I_ want _to be Asterpaw and not Copperpaw? What if I_ want _to be emotional?_ Asterpaw forced the thoughts away; there was no point in asking those questions. He was on his own on this journey. To become a warrior with only apathy.

* * *

Asterpaw glanced at Aridpaw and Heraldpaw, who were sharing prey in the clearing. _The least I can do is act like a normal apprentice._ Heraldpaw wrinkled her muzzle once she saw him.

"Ew! Get away from me, freak!" Heraldpaw snapped. Aridpaw glowered her brother, baring her teeth and growling softly. Heraldpaw whipped his head to face Aridpaw. "Shut up! He is one and you know it!" Heraldpaw stalked off, his tail lashing angrily. Aridpaw cast an apologetic glance at Asterpaw.

Aridpaw sighed. "Sorry. He's been really touchy lately." She shook her head and groomed her fur for a short moment. "How's apprentice life been for you?" _S-Should I tell her the truth? No. She won't believe me._ "Shy, aren't you? It's okay, I can relate." Asterpaw's ears pricked; what reason could Aridpaw have to be shy? "My father, well…isn't exactly a tom." _What do you mean by that?_ "Applestar was born a tom, but doesn't consider herself to be one. You can figure out the rest." _Oh._

"I-It's okay…" Asterpaw found himself trying to comfort her. Aridpaw smiled weakly at Asterpaw.

The golden tabby nodded gratefully. "Thank you, Copperpaw. But really though- I'd hate to be in your position. After all, you'll never know your father…" She trailed off. _If only she knew the truth…_ "F-Forgive me. That was insensitive and rude of me to say. Would you like a bite out of this prey to make up for it?" Asterpaw couldn't help but nod. From the side of his vision, he could tell Jackalstrike was staring him down, his glare drilling into his back. _Can't I eat? Wait, nope. No questions._

"I'm grateful for your offer." Asterpaw meowed after swallowing one last bite. _At least I'm not hungry._ "I-I need to go to Jackalstrike now. Probably for battle practice. AGAIN." Aridpaw tilted her head in confusion. _Oh, I forgot. Jackalstrike has been drilling battle moves into me since day one._ "Jackalstrike's been obsessive about training lately." He half lied. _At least it's half true._ Aridpaw laughed breezily. _I'm just realizing that this is the first time I've heard her laugh. Her laugh is pretty, either way._

"Well, by the time you manage to finish up this session you should be a fully fledged warrior!" Aridpaw joked, or that was just Asterpaw's guess, since she winked at him while saying that. "I'm half joking. I can't wait for a sparring match with you, just to see how sharp your battle skills really are." _Is that wise? What if Jackalstrike's overseeing it? He'll be so angry!_

"Copperpaw, Heraldpaw and Aridpaw! Get over here now, we're taking a walk to the training hollow!" Jackalstrike snarled. Asterpaw winced. This was not going to end well. Asterpaw followed Aridpaw and Heraldpaw over to Jackalstrike. Asterpaw could feel his father's gaze rest on him as he looked at his paws. "Let's go. Ashendapple, lead the way." Ashendapple, who was now standing next to him nodded. Aridpaw and Heraldpaw followed the dappled gray she-cat, padding out of camp. Asterpaw begun to follow them too, but Jackalstrike leaned into his face and softly growled. "Watch what you say, son. Your _feelings_ might get hurt."

* * *

Three moons had passed since Asterpaw's apprentice ceremony. Nothing had changed, really. Jackalstrike's harsh training, Petalpaw being shamed by the Clan, no one in the Clan trying to trust him. _Does Aridpaw count?_ That was his life. And he'd gotten used to it. No emotions, like Jackalstrike had said. His Clanmates reluctantly admitted that Asterpaw was well on his way to becoming a warrior of StormClan. But it didn't complete him. It was like he was still missing something, like he was empty. Currently he was on a border patrol with Ashendapple, Aridpaw, Jackalstrike and Petalpaw. The neighboring Clan, WillowClan had been growing hostile lately and Applestar ordered them to check for signs of activity.

"Do you really think that WillowClan will attack us?" Petalpaw meowed aloud. "If they were intent on attacking, they would've attacked one of our patrols by now." Ashendapple nodded.

"Just because they haven't done it yet it doesn't mean they will." Ashendapple reminded her. "We should remain vigilant when patrolling our borders." Petalpaw looked like she doubted that, but she didn't press the subject any further. _What if they attack our patrol?! Stop it, Asterpaw. A true warrior doesn't fear._ Ashendapple stopped suddenly. "I smell WillowClan scent nearby. Jackalstrike and Petalpaw, I want you to check over nearby the fallen birch tree to find any warriors there. Me, Aridpaw and Copperpaw will check this way." Jackalstrike and Petalpaw bounded in the direction of the fallen birch tree, their pelts bristling. _They must be itching for battle._ Asterpaw followed Ashendapple and Aridpaw, hoping they wouldn't run into any cats- WillowClan warriors or rogues. _I don't want to fight._

"Ashendapple, do you smell that stench? It's even stronger than before. Do you think-" Aridpaw began, before her mew was cut short by a blood-curdling screech.

"RRRRRAAAAAAAAAOOOOOOOOWWW!" Asterpaw froze. Petalpaw. His mother. In danger. Ashendapple quickly rushed back the way they came, her paws carrying her as if she was racing through the entire forest. Aridpaw and Asterpaw ran behind her, their light pawsteps going the speed of light as they rushed to Petalpaw and Jackalstrike. What Asterpaw saw next burned into his mind, a scar forever left on his frigid bosom. Petalpaw on the ground. Not moving. Blood foaming from her mouth. Jackalstrike, fighting a WillowClan patrol. _Did they do this?_ Ashendapple immediately thrust herself into the battle, her claws unsheathed already. _I can't grieve. I must fight. That's all I'm expected to do._ Asterpaw charged into the battle, resisting the urge to run back and check on his mother. _I can't. I must fight my enemies._ Asterpaw found himself facing a rather large WillowClan tom. The tom was black and white with green eyes, his fur bristling wildly. _You won't take me down._

Asterpaw lunged for the black and white tom, hissing in fury. _StarClan, don't let Jackalstrike hear the rage in meow!_ His claws raked the tom, making him spit in a rage. The WillowClan warrior bit Asterpaw on his scruff and threw him into a tree. _Ow- No. Pain isn't allowed either._ A flicker of surprise flashed upon the warrior's face when he realized Asterpaw was trying to stand back up. The tom rushed towards him, his teeth bared and ready sink into Asterpaw's neck. Suddenly a pale golden flash tackled the enemy warrior, pinning him down. _It's Aridpaw who saved me,_ He realized with a jolt of shock.

"Get out of here." She spat drily, her gaze filled with hatred. Aridpaw lifted her claw so he could somewhat escape from her grasp. He immediately ran off in the direction of his camp, or so Asterpaw had guessed. _Just because she saved you doesn't mean Jackalstrike would approve of feeling grateful._ Asterpaw glanced around himself, suddenly realizing the commotion had died down. The WillowClan warriors were gone. Asterpaw quickly stopped himself from letting out a sigh of relief. _I mustn't feel that, either._ Asterpaw nodded briskly at her and rushed over to Petalpaw. _You can't be dead. You haven't become a warrior yet._ He gently prodded Petalpaw's shoulder with his paw. _Wake up, wake up…_ Petalpaw wouldn't wake up. This couldn't be happening. It was a dream. Yes, a bad dream- no. Jackalstrike said there was no such thing as bad dreams. Yet why did it feel like one? A tail brushed softly against his back. Asterpaw turned to see Ashendapple, whose eyes glimmered with sympathy.

"It's alright, Copperpaw. Petalpaw will be accepted as a warrior in StarClan." Ashendapple mewed. She glanced at Jackalstrike, who was glaring at Petalpaw in contempt. "Come on now, Jackalstrike. We must take her back to the Clan." Jackalstrike hissed at her.

"She's a traitor to StormClan! She doesn't deserve to return to our camp!" Jackalstrike spat, baring his long, protruding teeth. Ashendapple growled at him, making him shut it. "Fine. Take her back to camp." He grumbled. Asterpaw restrained himself from hissing at Jackalstrike. _He's my mentor. He decides when I become a warrior. He decides when I feel emotion._ Asterpaw followed right behind Ashendapple, Petalpaw's body dangling from her back. _StarClan, how did it come to this? Petalpaw's the only one who's ever understood me…_ Something brushed up against his pelt. It was Aridpaw who was walking beside him. Nervousness fluttered around in his belly as if was a butterfly. _Stop that. Nervousness is a sign of weakness. A-Although…_

"I'm sorry about Petalpaw." Aridpaw whispered, her voice sorrowful and genuine. _She cared about Petalpaw?_ "I don't know how I would feel if Peonypatch was taken from me and Heraldpaw." _You wouldn't. But you would be able to express those feelings, while I must move on and forget she never existed._ Asterpaw nodded at her weakly, still in a tiny daze.

"T-Thank you." He managed to choke out, as quietly as he could. _Jackalstrike will kill me if he finds out that I cared about Petalpaw,_ Asterpaw mused. _But why would he think that I wouldn't? She's my mother. I shouldn't be asking questions. Warriors don't ask any questions._ "But let's keep going until we reach camp."

* * *

Ashendapple had laid Petalpaw's body on the ground after carrying it since they'd left. Petalpaw's limp, lifeless body lay on the ground, blood pouring out of the slit in her neck. _Petalpaw…_ Asterpaw caught sight of Jackalstrike glaring at him. _No emotions, I got it. Sheesh. You could at least try._ Soft murmurs raced across camp.

"Even if she betrayed her Clan…she would've made a wonderful warrior…" A dappled tortoiseshell she-cat mumbled, looking down at her paws. _That's Reedstorm…_ Reedstorm had been Petalpaw's mentor, from what Asterpaw had heard. She'd often make snarky comments about her own apprentice as loud as she could, showing her obvious disappointment for Petalpaw's mistake. _And that mistake is me, Asterpaw. Or Copperpaw, as they think they know me._ Pondsplash, the light brown tabby tom nodded in agreement.

"Me and her may of had our arguments…but she still holds a place in my heart." He mewed. _Mine too, but it apparently has no room for…anything, really._

"Cats of StormClan, today we've witnessed the death of Petalpaw. She was a wonderful cat and didn't deserve her death." Applestar meowed, her voice echoing with sorrow. "And for that, we shall perform the dead apprentice ceremony. Spirits of StarClan, we call upon you to look at this apprentice. She's followed your code well, and in turn we ask that she receives her warrior name. From this day on, we ask that she may be called Petalbreeze for her short time with us, such as how a breeze comes and goes…" Every cat in the clearing bowed their heads in respect, all except Jackalstrike. _What is he doing? He's supposed to be a respectful warrior!_ Applestar lifted her head, now noticing Jackalstrike glaring at her. "Jackalstrike," She sternly hissed. "Bow your head in respect for the dead."

"Why should I? She gave me a useless son who can't do anything right!" Jackalstrike hissed. _He revealed it. It's known._ All the cats looked at him in shock. "That's right! Copperpaw is my son!"

"And why is this relevant to Petalpaw's death, Jackalstrike?" Applestar hissed, her voice on the edge of snapping. _Did he? No. No. No. He couldn't have._ Jackalstrike sneered at Asterpaw before speaking.

Jackalstrike yowled. "Because _I_ killed her. I did you all a favor!" All the cats in the clearing stared at him, wide eyed. "That's right. And Copperpaw is my son! Just think about it! Chase me out. Kill me. It doesn't matter. Copperpaw is still here, with _my_ blood." He snarled, now stalking out of the camp exit. _A-Am I free? Is this a dream come true? Or a nightmare just getting started?_ Applestar looked down at Asterpaw, her eyes glimmering with an unreadable expression. She glanced at Aridpaw and Heraldpaw, her expression exhausted.

"Cats of StormClan, I will be making two new warriors today for their courage in today's battle." Applestar mewed, her tone gentle. _What? Why am I…?_ "Aridpaw and Copperpaw, please step forwards." No one dared to argue. _Is it just a really shocking night, or…?_ "Do you both promise to follow the warrior code until your death?"

"Wait a minute. Why?" Asterpaw found himself asking. Several cats glowered him for interrupting the ceremony, including Aridpaw. "You all heard who my father is. He's a murderer. Do you really want me in this Clan?" Aridpaw shot him a sharp glare, as if urging him to should shut up. _Does she want this to go perfectly, or does she actually care?_

"Because you aren't your father. Do not doubt your leader." Applestar meowed, a sharp anger edging his throat. Heraldpaw snorted, probably in amusement. _Aren't they going to turn against me? Or are they waiting for the right moment to strike?_ "I will ask it again- do you promise to follow the warrior code until your death?"

"I do." Aridpaw and Asterpaw found themselves saying together.

Applestar nodded in relief. "Then by the powers of StarClan, I name Aridpaw Arideye and Copperpaw-" She stopped suddenly to look down at Petalpaw's body, limp and lifeless. _Does she know about…my real name?_ "Will be known as Asterpetal after the original name your mother gave you and quite frankly, after your mother. We welcome you both as full warriors of StormClan, and I hope StarClan does so too."

"Arideye! Asterpetal!" The cats in the clearing called out. All except Heraldpaw, who was yowling angrily out to the stars. Asterpetal's fur bristled. Couldn't Heraldpaw at least _act_ like he was happy? Soon the cheers died down once the Clan began dispersing once again. Asterpetal noticed Applestar jumping down from the Mossrock. _Is this important?_ She padded up to both Asterpetal and Arideye.

"You both must do the traditional silent vigil tonight. I wish you luck, as it is leaf-fall." Applestar reminded them. _The vigil? Jackalstrike didn't say anything about that…_ "I warn you to be careful, it looks like it'll be freezing tonight." She mewed, her whiskers twitching in amusement. Applestar padded away from them, her tail dragging on the ground. "Jackalstrike, how could you?" She murmured. Asterpetal felt someone's fur brush aside his. He turned to see Arideye, who was gazing intently at him. _I can tell her now. Jackalstrike is gone._

"Arideye, before our vigil may I tell you something?" Asterpetal mewed.

Arideye nodded. "Sure. What is it?" He licked her cheek fur gently.

"I-I…love you." He mumbled softly. Arideye's eyes widened. _Is that good or bad?_ Arideye shook her head.

"Asterpetal, I-I'm sorry but…" Arideye mumbled. "How would I know that you can even feel any emotions? You've never shown affection for anyone, not even for your mother. You could be lying for all I know. Like _Jackalstrike_." _What?! I'm not like him! I have emotions! I wouldn't lie!_

"I'm not like Jackalstrike, Arideye. _Please_. I _can_ love." Asterpetal begged her. _Give me a chance. Please, Arideye._ Arideye shook her head and sighed. "What makes you think I'm like him?" She sharpy whipped her head to face him, her eyes narrowed and focused.

"Why? I'll tell you why." Arideye hissed softly at him. "Did you know this from the beginning, Asterpetal? Your father being a cold-blooded warrior from the start?" Asterpetal had to be honest with his friend; all the secrets can't be hidden any longer. He nodded. "Then there is your answer. Liar." _N-No…after Jackalstrike left it would turn out just fine! Why did Arideye reject me? Will she ever love me back?_ Arideye didn't even bother to look back at him. _StarClan, what have I done?_

* * *

"Remember, this is a battle patrol." Pondsplash mewed softly. "We must be careful as we progress." _Right, right. Let Applestar speak, will ya?_ Applestar glared at him for a brief moment, getting him to shut up for a bit. "E-Erm, uh…sorry, Applestar." Applestar sighed, but didn't say anything more about it.

"On my signal." Applestar hissed softly. Soon the WillowClan patrol came, as expected. Asterpetal grinned to himself. _Revenge for Petalbreeze, here I come!_ "StormClan, ATTACK!" Like a lightning strike in the middle of a storm, the StormClan cats bolted for the shocked WillowClan patrol. Asterpetal charged for a warrior about his size, his claws unsheathed. He scratched the WillowClan warrior with his long claws, making the opposing warrior screech a little. The opposer shook his head and launched himself at Asterpetal. Asterpetal nimbly dodged, landing on his paws.

"RRAAOW!" Asterpetal instantly froze. _Arideye._ He rushed over to the sand colored she-cat, his pace growing faster and faster as the battle raged on as if it were a storm. Arideye was facing a large black and white tom, similar to the one Asterpetal had faced when he was Asterpaw. _He has green eyes too…are they the same cat? Or are they related?_ Asterpetal didn't bother asking any questions. Arideye was struggling to keep the tom at bay, and he was unrelenting in his assult on her. _I must help her._ Asterpetal tackled the tom, knocking him over onto the ground.

Asterpetal glanced at Arideye before returning his attention to the attacker. "Leave, Arideye!" Arideye was frozen in fear. Her pelt was bristling. Sharp claws scraped Asterpetal's cheek. Making him wince in pain. He quickly got off of the tom, growling softly at him. _You will regret that._ Asterpetal raised his forepaw to strike at the tom, but he quickly ran out of the way. Asterpetal saw the tom running towards Arideye. _No._ Arideye wouldn't be able to defend herself, She was not in the right state to fight anymore. Asterpetal raced in front of Arideye, ignoring the blood-curdling screeches from the battle that dragged on for what seemed to be an eternity. The black and white warrior's claws dug into Asterpetal's flesh, cutting deep slits into his neck. "MRRAAOW!" He yelped before falling down onto the ground before the WillowClan warrior.

"I-I didn't mean-" He stammered. Arideye snarled at him.

Her tail lashing, she bore her teeth at him. "Get out of here, WillowClan scum." The warrior ran off in the direction of WillowClan's camp. Arideye gently licked Asterpetal's forehead. "Asterpetal, are you okay?" _Ow. Ow. OW._ Asterpetal weakly tried to get up to his paws, but he soon found himself back on the forest floor, his muzzle hitting the sturdy earth. "A-Asterpetal, hang in there. Don't try to get up." Asterpetal's gaze flickered up to Arideye. "Please."

"A-Arideye, did I prove it to you?" Asterpetal choked out the words. "Did I prove that I can love yet?" He rasped. Arideye nuzzled his chest fur, nodding. "N-Now I can finally…rest." Arideye let out a shocked gasp.

"No! Don't, Asterpetal! StormClan needs you. _I_ need you." Arideye protested, although it came out more like a wail.

Asterpetal touched Arideye's nose. "I'll always watch over you, Arideye." He murmured softly, closing his eyes. Arideye's wails became more distant as Asterpetal's hearing faded away faster and faster as his spirit was being pulled away to the skies. _S-StarClan…?_ He caught glimpse of Petalbreeze. His mother. _Petalbreeze!_ Asterpetal glanced back down, seeing Arideye still trying to wake him up. _I'm so sorry I had to leave you Arideye. I'll always love you, even from up here._

* * *

Asterkit is born to Petalpaw, an apprentice who became a queen too early in her life. Jackalstrike, his father is controlling his every action. Once shocking secrets are revealed and almost everything is said and done, Asterpetal tells his closest friend Arideye how he feels about her. He is rejected and doesn't understand why, and will try everything to prove that he can love. (Challenge for TorrentClan)


	6. Cloud Nine on the Flip-side- TorrentClan

**EDITED VERSION**

 **~Dustcloud POV~**

"Minnowstar's…dead?" I choked. Marigoldleap, the only medicine cat of MistClan nodded. "But how…she was-"

Marigoldleap sighed. "She was severely wounded from the battle with BlazeClan, Dustcloud. What did you expect?" No. It can't be. This is just a nightmare, right? A bad dream? A bad daydream? Please StarClan, let it be one. "Don't worry, you'll be fine. StarClan will give you your nine lives, and all is fine. You'll see her again in…S-StarClan." Why is she so worried all of a sudden? "Anyways, we need to tell the Clan. They deserve to know." Fine, I guess that's fair. But I won't be a good leader, especially after Minnowstar. How will I ever be able to take her place? Me and Marigoldleap padded out of the den to be greeted by several of our Clanmates. StarClan, help me…. I leaped onto Tall Boulder, nervousness rising up my throat.

"Cats of MistClan, I have grave news to share." I yowled across camp, getting my clanmates' attention. They all looked up at me, their sorrow gleaming in their eyes. Out them all, I noticed Bristleleaf and Echoleap gazing at me with intensity in their eyes. They grew up with Minnowstar as their leader. Not me. They won't trust me as easily. Because I'm far too young for this role. "Minnowstar, our beloved leader has succumbed to her battle wounds from the battle with BlazeClan." Wails of grief and sorrow echoed throughout the camp, although some of them had already known her fate was sealed. Marigoldleap looked down at her paws, shaking her head. Was she alright? There was no time to ask though. It wasn't the time to ask, anyways. "As tradition follows, I shall head to the Hawk's Talons to receive my nine lives. Lionclaw will be the new deputy."

"Lionclaw! Lionclaw!" The MistClan cats cheered, although they were still distraught. Lionclaw, the pale yellow tabby didn't even bother to look up- Minnowstar was his sister. I could hear the grumbles from some of the Clan from the Tall Boulder.

"He's still too young."

"It's suspicious that Minnowstar died so easily. Did he do something to kill her off?"

"I should've been deputy instead."

"I'll never trust a cat as young as him to lead our Clan."

Sighing to myself, I jumped down from Tall Boulder and padded over to Marigoldleap, who was talking to her littermates Tulipwing and Vixentuft. Tulipwing was a small light brown tom with dark brown ears, chest and paws. He had pale green eyes, which glowed in even the darkest of nights. Vixentuft was a calico she-cat and had blue eyes; the left eye was blind. Just how did she become blind in one eye if her parents don't have a blind eye? She can't be Bristleleaf and Badgerclaw's daughter if that's the case. Marigoldleap nodded to her littermates and padded towards me.

"Dustcloud, are you ready?" She whispered. I nodded. "Okay, then. Let's go see S-StarClan." Why does she get so scared at the prospect of StarClan? She's a medicine cat, for StarClan's sake! Either way, Hawk's Talons wasn't too far off from our territory, so I doubt we need any herbs. And besides, the other Clans have to walk along our territory if their leader dies and their deputy needs to get their nine lives. So we have full rights, anyways.

Vixentuft glanced at me. "I don't get how Minnowstar made you the deputy, though. You're too young." Tulipwing didn't say anything, but nodded briskly. While I get understand her concerns, I don't think that I'll be that bad. Right? Marigoldleap didn't bother saying anything, only gazing up at the sky, her eyes clouded.

"Well Vixentuft, I doubt that the Clan would be all to accepting of you as leader either. You're the same age as me." I shot back. Vixentuft hissed at me, but didn't say anything else. "Tulipwing, do you have any concerns that I should be aware of?" The tom shook his head wildly, his green eyes sparking with fear. Okay then Tulipwing, just don't stick so close to Vixentuft so I won't assume anything.

"Do you really think the Clan wants to watch you ridicule its warriors instead of leaving for Hawk's Talons? No? Then get out of my sight." Vixentuft growled. "You'll never be the cat that Minnowstar was. You'll never be my leader." Suppressing a hiss, I followed Marigoldleap, who was already at the camp exit.

Marigoldleap shook her head. "And this is why the Clan doesn't trust you as their leader." As if fighting with Vixentuft would get the Clan going! Everyone fights with her! "Yes, Vixentuft gets on my nerves to, but she's a Clanmate. I doubt S-StarClan would approve." Growling to myself, I marched ahead of her, my paws itching with fury. How dare she say that StarClan wouldn't approve of me? Minnowstar made me deputy because she trusted me to lead her Clan well! As far as I'm concerned, Marigoldleap didn't have a vision saying that I shouldn't be deputy. "Dustcloud!" I glanced behind myself, seeing Marigoldleap rushing towards me.

"Oh? I thought that you didn't want to come with." I hissed, my voice on the edge. Marigoldleap flinched, her green eyes filled with concern. Forcing my fur to lay flat, I sighed. "What?"

Marigoldleap took in a deep breath. "I'm not implying anything, Dustcloud. But I'm giving you advice for MistClan's future. Don't do anything too rash, okay?" Grumbing, I nodded. "Thank you. That helps a lot." Helps what? Marigoldleap began walking ahead of me, her fur bristling. She's not going to tell me, is she? Me and Marigoldleap trekked further towards Hawk's Talons, with the young medicine cat looking back at the direction of camp almost every single heartbeat. Or that's what it felt like she was doing, at least to me. I set my tail on her shoulder, taking her by surprise. "Dustcloud? What are you doing?"

I sighed. "It'll be okay, Marigoldleap. StarClan won't kill you." Marigoldleap's gaze widened in fear. "I'm sorry, that wasn't what I-" She shook her head, rolling her eyes.

"If that was a joke, then it was in poor taste." Marigoldleap muttered. "I have my reasons for being afraid, and you should too, if you were smart."

My shoulder fur bristled. "I am smart! What could StarClan possibly be hiding that makes you so jumpy?" Marigoldleap narrowed her green eyes. Uh oh. That's not good.

"Who's the medicine cat? Don't answer- that was rhetorical." Marigoldleap grumbled. Who put dirt in your freshkill? Jeez, you think you know a cat… "Let's go now, Dustcloud. I want to get this over with." She then immediately began sprinting towards the direction of Hawk's Talons. I raced after her, my paws feeling as if they were walking on air. I don't think I've ever felt so free from the Camp before!

"I'm going to catch you, Marigoldleap!" I called after her. The pale gray she-cat glanced back at me, a smile on her face. Marigoldleap ran even faster, as if she were a cheetah. I wish this moment could last forever…

Marigoldleap skidded to a halt and turned around to face me. She tackled me once I was about to get her, pinning us both down. "It looks like I've caught you." Did she really? Purring, I licked her forehead. If only you were a warrior, Marigoldleap… Because you'd honestly be the fastest runner in MistClan. "Okay, we've gotta stop getting distracted. And by 'we' I mean you." She mumbled with a smirk on her face. Marigoldleap scrambled off of me, now standing right in front of me. With a sigh, I heaved myself up and glanced up at the stars. Minnowstar's up there. Watching over me. Watching over Marigoldleap. Watching MistClan. Watching all of the Clans. That'll be me and Marigoldleap one day, and then Vixentuft, Tulipwing and…what am I doing? Listing off the names of cats who I think will go to StarClan? I need to be here. Not in the future. I need to be in the present.

* * *

 **~Marigoldleap POV~**

"I am NOT touching that with my nose!" Dustcloud protested. Forcing my fur to lay flat, I pushed him closer to the Hawk's Talons, which was actually just a large branch from a tree that sort of looks like a hawk's talons. "MARIGOLDLEAP, PLEASE!"

With another grunt, I pushed him even closer. "Just touch it! It's not like I'm making you eat part of it! Would you like that instead?" Dustcloud parted his jaws to argue, but clearly had thought better of it. "Good apprentice," I lightly teased him, earning another annoyed mutter from Dustcloud. "Now touch it with your nose and close your eyes." Rather reluctantly, the dark brown tabby tom touched it with his nose and closed his eyes like instructed. Thank goodness he listened. Now it's time for me to follow after him and make sure he doesn't die. Doing the same exact thing, I expected StarClan to come forth and begin the nine lives ceremony. But nothing happened. Was this normal? All I could see was my own eyelids blocking my vision. Opening my eyes, I looked at Dustcloud, who was looking down at his paws. "Did they come?"

"No, they didn't. But I don't know why." He murmured, his voice heavy with gloom. "Doesn't StarClan approve of me? Why don't they if they do? Do they think I'll become the worst leader they've ever known? Do they see a future where I'm the villain? Where I'm a murderer? Where both cats young and old hate me? Why?" I couldn't bring an answer. How was I supposed to answer those questions? Tell him, 'Oh, it'll be alright, even though I'm not completely sure what will happen.' Yeah, that's a real help. "I don't even have nine lives. How will MistClan react? How will BlazeClan and LightClan react?"

I growled softly. "They won't. Because we won't tell them. This will be our secret, and it will stay that way." Dustcloud glanced at me, his eyes full of sorrow. "So from now on, they'll know you as Duststar. Come on, let's go back to MistClan. They'll trust you. You're their leader, and that's something they can't change too easily." Dustcloud, now Duststar nodded in defeat.

"How I'll lead the Clan, I don't know." Duststar sighed. "But you'll always be there to help me, right?" Will I? I don't know. What if StarClan finds out about Duststar becoming leader? I'd rather him be leader than most cats in our Clan. For extra reassurance, I touched the branch with my nose once more. In a whirl, I was pulled into the starry clearing where StarClan resides. Maybe they are giving Duststar his nine lives after all! Glancing around myself, I checked to see if Duststar was around.

"Your precious leader isn't here." A gruff meow snapped. I turned to see a gray tabby with white chest fur. Lapwingstar. Oh, how I hate and fear this tom. He shouldn't be here. He should be rotting in the Place of No Stars, but he somehow managed to overthrow StarClan, if I'm correct. "Minnowstar isn't here either, for your information. She's currently residing with your mentor, Rosestripe." No! Rosestripe shouldn't be in that nightmarish forest! Why must Lapwingstar hate StarClan so? "Minnowstar should've made Brambleflight the deputy. Then StarClan's vision for the Clans would be dawning soon."

I began shivering instantly, my paws stuck to the ground. "Dustcloud can be just as good." I squeaked. Lapwingstar glowered me, his amber eyes gleaming with rage. My heart lurched. Is he going to kill me here?

"I'd kill you for such insolence, but I guess I can understand your concerns. Dustcloud will lead MistClan to their demise. Do you get me?" Lapwingstar hissed. I shook my head, feeling sick. Duststar wouldn't lead us to our destruction, even if he's too rash for his own good. He wouldn't. He couldn't. "If words aren't enough to convince you, then how about this pretty little sight?" Almost at once I was dragged into a new vision, despite my quiet protests. Soon everything began coming together. Duststar, standing on Tall Boulder, a blood-thirsty scowl on his face. Tulipwing, in the clearing, on the ground limp and lifeless, drenched in blood. Vixentuft standing over him, her eyes filled with anger and guilt as she viciously mauled her own littermate. Bristleleaf and Echoleap, arguing and fighting each other, their pelts stained with the others blood. I shut my eyes. This isn't the future. It can't be. Opening my eyes, I saw me. I was standing in front of Duststar, my eyes gleaming with fury.

"You monster! How could you tear the Clan apart like this?!" I'd yowled. Duststar rolled his pale blue eyes, his pelt prickling with annoyance. "Duststar, I'm your medicine cat! Listen to me!"

He hissed at me. "Who cares what you think? All you do is sit inside your den all day pretending to be scared of your own shadow, instead of healing your Clanmates!" Duststar whipped his head towards Lionclaw, who was glowering the vision me as well. "Get rid of her for me, will you?"

"With pleasure." Lionclaw growled before pouncing on the vision me, his claws unsheathed. His claws raked my eyes, blood splattering on the ground. The pale yellow tabby tom sunk his teeth into my neck, pinning me down so I couldn't escape.

"RRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAOOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWW!" A blood curdling screech split my ears. This can't be how I die. This can't be Duststar. It can't be Lionclaw. It can't be our future. Shutting my eyes once more, I was back in StarClan with Lapwingstar, who was glowering me intensely.

"Do you get the message, Marigoldleap? Dustcloud mustn't lead MistClan." Lapwingstar snarled before my vision was blank once again. Opening my eyes, I wearily glanced back at Duststar, who was waiting impatiently for me to wake up, I presume. All those things I saw…could they be true? Duststar can't be a murderer. He wouldn't dare. And even if Lapwingstar's right…that can't be the only future for us, right?

Duststar sighed in relief. "You're okay. Did they say anything to you?" I want to tell him so bad, but…would that increase his chances of becoming what I saw? Shaking my head, I closed my eyes. "Oh. Okay then…Marigoldleap, do you trust me to lead MistClan? Do you support me?"

After all of the things I saw, do I? He could become a murderer and cause mass chaos for the Clans. But this is Lapwingstar who showed me the vision. Is he lying to me so that way Brambleflight can overthrow him? He wasn't a leader of MistClan. He doesn't have our interests at heart. Minnowstar must've made him deputy for a reason. I can't trust Lapwingstar. But even if he's actually right, then I have the power to change it, don't I? He can't be on the path to destruction now. I can keep him from falling into Lapwingstar's trap of destroying MistClan, just like how Lapwingstar wants things to go. I am his medicine cat. I will protect him. Nodding, I whispered, "Of course, my leader."


	7. My Greatest Love & Greatest Fear

_Tristan padded towards the freshkill pile, where his mother Maple was picking out a piece of prey._ Is that a fish? _He wondered._ Wait, let me guess. Dove brought it in, didn't she? _With a sigh, the young fighter stood beside Maple. She looked up at him, her mouth stuffed with the fish. Her light green eyes gleamed with pride. Tristan felt like she was saying "I'm so proud of you, my son."_ _Or_ _at least that's what he wanted it to be._

" _Maple, can we_ _share tongues together_ _?" Tristan asked, his meow soft. Maple smiled and flicked her tail towards a small empty clearing in camp. They walked over there, walking side by side._ Others might think it's weird, but I'd rather share prey with my mother than eat with some she-cat. _Tristan's thoughts drifted to Spiritmask, the newest Mediator in the group. Spiritmask was already mates with Hazel, and they'd been acting lovey-dovey since they were apprentices together._ That's one reason why, actually. _Tristan sat across from Maple, who was already eating on the fish._ She must be hungry!

" _Oh, I'm sorry Tristan. Did you want some?" Maple asked, her voice gentle and warm. Nodding, Tristan bit down onto the fish,_ _sinking his teeth into_ _it._ I hate fish, but for some reason Maple likes it. So I'll just eat it so she doesn't worry. " _I can't believe you're all grown up. Time flies by, doesn't it? But you'll always be my little fighter, won't you?" Purring, Tristan took another bite out of the fish. "Don't you think it's time I retire, though? I can't lead the Ten Flames forever!"_ What?! No!

 _Maple was the leader of the Ten Flames and Tristan's mother, so of course he wouldn't want her to step down._ She's had a great leadership so far, and I doubt Violet would ever live up to her legacy. _Violet was the other leader, and she'd been chosen more recently. Currently she was in the nursery, after she'd mothered her and Silverfire's kits._ I've gotta admit, Firegaze and River are quite adorable. At least they have a sibling to play with. _Tristan's known ever since he was able to see and hear that he was the only one surviving in his litter. There wasn't any changing it, of course._ But I wish things had been different. _Maple seemed to notice Tristan's gloomy demeanor and licked her son's forehead._

" _Aw, Tristan. Don't be like that. There might be a chance that you could be leader next. I've always known that you've wanted to be leader, ever since you were a kit." Maple mewed. A prick of defiance poked at Tristan's heart._

" _But I don't want to be a leader anymore," sighed Tristan. "I want_ you _to stay leader." Maple's eyes widened in surprise, tilting her head._

" _And why's that?" asked Maple, genuine concern in her voice._ Because I love and look up to you. _Tristan wanted to say, but the words were lodged in his throat._ I can't imagine life without you. Ever since Spider died, I've only had you. _The dark ginger tabby she-cat's green gaze simmered with sympathy. "Are you worried about losing me, Tristan?"_

 _Tristan managed to utter the words, "Yes. I can't lose you too, Maple." He looked down at his paws, his pelt feeling hot. What if Maple scolded him for thinking like that? Or she'd just call him a feather-brain and carry on with her day?_ That's most likely what will happen. _The brown tabby tom concluded ruefully._ That's what Spider would've done, anyways.

 _Spider had always been cold and strict with Tristan, always watching his every move._ I can remember when he'd pressured me to get a mate so he could continue his precious bloodline. _Tristan hated the idea of it at the time, and the thought of Spider suggesting it infuriated him._ He probably said it because of Twyla. Just because some she-cat likes me, it doesn't mean I should want to be her mate! And besides, she's probably moved on from me by now. _Tristan's paws itched with irritation. He shouldn't be thinking about the past- he should be living in the present._

" _Aw, Tristan. I love you very much and I couldn't bare losing you as well. But life always throws unexpected hurdles at us that'll push us to our limits." Maple whispered, her mew as soft and gentle as a dove's sweet coo._ I know that, but…I don't want to imagine those hurdles. " _And I'll try to stick around as long as I can, okay?" Shaking his head, Tristan nodded in defeat._ There's no point in trying to convince her otherwise. I might get her upset if I did. _Tristan's ears pricked to the sound of pawsteps rushing towards them._ Who's that? _He glanced to his left to see Violet speeding out of the nursery, her amber eyes wide and full of panic._

" _River's gone!" She wailed._ River isn't in the nursery? What happened? _Maple and Tristan immediately got to their paws and rushed over to Violet. The pale gray and white tabby she-cat's pelt was bristling wildly. "He wasn't in the nursery when I'd left, and he isn't in camp either!"_ That's concerning! _Violet whipped her head to face Maple. "Did you see him at all today? By the stars, he could be outside of camp!" Tristan caught Silverfire- Violet's mate- padding up to them with a calm expression on his face. "HOW COULD YOU BE CALM AT A TIME LIKE THIS?!" Silverfire tilted his head in confusion._ Feather-brain! " _River isn't in camp!"_

 _Silverfire tensed up immediately. "River's outside of camp! I'll go check nearby the hunting grounds!" He pushed past Tristan and Maple and raced to the exit. Tristan unsheathed his claws, but didn't say anything._ He could at least be more careful!

 _Maple glanced briefly at Violet. "Go get Spiritmask and follow Silverfire. He may be a mediator, but his sense of smell is keener than most of us." Violet nodded and went to fetch Spiritmask, Tristan guessed. The leader trained her gaze on Tristan, her light green eyes burning into his pelt. "You and me are going to check the river. We're some of the only few that know how to swim, and we can't have too many cats out at once."_ This is it. My first real task as a fully fledged fighter. _Tristan followed Maple out of camp, already racing against each ticking heartbeat that River was missing._ We can't lose him. We just can't. _The two cats halted at the edge of the riverbank, scanning the open for the small kit._

" _MRRAAOW!" A squeaky yelp split Tristan's ears._ River. _Maple immediately threw herself into the raging waves once she spotted the young tomkit barely clinging onto a rock in the middle of the river._ No! I won't lose Maple either! _Tristan copied her, flinging himself into the cold, freezing torrents. Soon Tristan managed to get himself above water, his head bobbing as he tried to keep himself afloat._ N-No! I need to keep going! _Maple was already by River, waiting for Tristan._ What is she waiting for? She needs to go! _As another rough wave attempted to fling him backwards, Tristan pawed his way towards Maple and River._

 _Maple's eyes were wide with fear and panic. "Tristan. Take River and hold him in your jaws as tightly as you can. Only one of us will be able to make it with River alive. These waves are too strong."_ I'm not letting Maple do this! She can't! " _Tristan! It's either one of us dies or we all die. I'm doing this for your sake." Rather reluctantly, Tristan scooped up the kitten in his jaws, River's scruff gripped firmly between his teeth. He squirmed restlessly, flailing his paws everywhere._ I wish we could just leave him! He clearly wants to die! _But he couldn't say that out loud. Especially since this was Violet's kit, and well…she would murder him if he said that aloud. Plus a kit was in between his jaws, so how could he say anything? At once, Maple nudged him to swim as fast as he could, while the waters were somewhat safe for now._ B-But… " _FOR GOODNESS SAKES, GO!" She began pushing Tristan towards the shore, urgency in her soft growl._ I can't lose you! _Maple snarled at Tristan, her eyes wild with rage and desperation._

" _M-Maple-!" Tristan yowled. Maple shoved him forwards once more, finally getting him to wad to shore._ But-! _Once Tristan had made it, he put River down and glanced back at Maple._ She'll make it, right? She's my leader. My mentor. My _mother_. _The dark ginger tabby she-cat struggled to make it through the waves as they began growing stronger. "Mom, I'll help you-"_

" _NO! JUST GET RIVER OUT OF HERE AND BACK TO CAMP!" Maple snapped, her fur soaked._ She won't make it. She can hardly stand. _Tristan put his left forepaw into the freezing currents. "DON'T. GET. YOURSELF. KILLED TOO." She hissed, her voice fading into a slur. Her eyelids drooping, she looked as if she was dead already. Maple's legs were wobbling as the water began pushing her down. With an earsplitting screech, Maple soon let herself fall into the depths of the river, drifting to the bottom._

 _Tristan's eyes widened. "Maple! NO!" There was no point in calling out for her._ Maple's dead. I could've saved her. She could be alive if it weren't for me. _Tristan looked back at River, the rather small pale gray and white tabby tom. He was complaining about how he didn't like how Tristan was carrying him. "Shut up! Our leader just died and all you can think about is how I carried you across the river?! She_ died _saving you. Ungrateful brat."_

" _I'm not ungrateful! I was just giving constructive criticism." River snapped back. "And I never even knew her, anyways! So why should I care?"_ He doesn't care if a member of his group _dies_ saving him? How dare he! I couldn't give two mousetails if he's a kit or not. He's _four moons old_.

" _A cat_ died _! Your leader, in specific!" Tristan hissed, his fury growing as the argument went on. River rolled his silver eyes, irritation flashing through them._ He has the nerve to- " _Why were you even out of camp?"_

 _River sighed. "Because I was bored. Camp's boring! So I thought I'd explore a bit, and-"_

" _You got a cat killed for nothing!" Tristan exploded. "River, I'm ashamed of you. Kits shouldn't be out of camp until they're apprenticed." River hissed at Tristan, his pelt bristling._ Oh how I'd love to claw his fur off! " _Knock it off!" Pawsteps could be heard rushing up to him. He turned to see Violet, Silverfire and Spiritmask rushing up to them._ Thank the stars they came in time.

 _Violet immediately began smothering her kit, her pelt bristling wildly. "River! You're okay!" She glanced at Tristan. "You actually found him! Thank you so much, Tristan. I never thought you'd actually be useful in your entire life."_ Does she still think of me like that to this day? I've changed- honest! _Silverfire gazed at Tristan, his silver eyes glittering with uncertainty._

" _Where's our leader?" He asked, his mew cold with suspicion._

 _Tristan's heart skipped a few beats. "Maple drowned trying to save River and me." He choked out, trying to convince himself that was the truth._ It can't be. Maple's an amazing swimmer. _Silverfire narrowed his eyes._

" _Did you murder her? It seems likely. After all, you were the only one with her. Besides River, that is." Silverfire growled, his claws unsheathed._ What?! I'd never kill my own mother! Everyone in the Ten Flames knows that by now! _Spiritmask winced, taking a few steps back. "River, did Tristan try to kill Maple?" Tristan's heart seemed to freeze in one place as the silence dragged on._ River doesn't like me for telling him off, _he notioned._ So he'll probably say I did so he never has to see me again.

 _River shook his head. "No. But he said that I'm an ungrateful brat and stupid for almost dying."_ That's not what I- You know what? It is not even worth it. _Violet glared at Tristan, her amber eyes burning with rage._

" _How could you say that? He almost died, and you have the gall to say that to him?" Violet snapped._ While that's correct, he doesn't seem to care about how Maple died! " _Answer me!"_

 _Tristan narrowed his eyes. "That wasn't what happened. He doesn't even care that Maple sacrificed her LIFE to save us both. I'm not bothering with it anymore. Your kit needs to learn some respect for his groupmates." With one last glare at River, Tristan padded back into camp, ignoring the stares coming from his fellow groupmates._ Stupid River. If he wasn't such an idiot, we would still have Maple. _Tristan's ears pricked to the sound of pawsteps rushing towards him. His gaze flickered to his left, to see Twyla bounding towards him._ Mouse-dung. I don't need this right now.

" _Hi, Tristan!" Twyla squealed, her light green eyes brimming with excitement._ Ugh, go away. _She tilted her head in confusion. "What's wrong? Did I do something bad?"_ No, but…you annoy me, that's for sure.

 _Tristan sighed. "No, but…I don't wanna talk about it right now." Twyla's eyes shone with hurt, causing Tristan to inwardly flinch._ I didn't mean to hurt her feelings, even if I don't like her that much. " _I-I'll tell you about it later, Twyla. Okay?"_

 _Twyla narrowed her eyes. "But if you're clearly bothered by it then you need to talk to someone!" She protested, her voice rising to a wail. "Please, Tristan? Please? Please?"_

" _No! Just leave me alone, Twyla!" thundered Tristan, stomping off towards the leader's den._ They'll never understand. No one ever will. I hate them all. _Upon entering Maple's vacant den, he sat down on his haunches. Staring down at Maple's old nest, he sighed. "Maple will never be with me again. She was the only one who understands me. I can't believe she did that."_

" _I can." Tristan turned to see Violet, her narrowed to slits. "She wanted you to be alive with the group, Tristan. Anyone can see that. Tell me Tristan, what do you think Maple wants you to do with your life now that she's passed?"_ Move on, but…can't I grieve for her? " _Tristan, I understand that your upset. I am too. But perhaps you could find some way or another to comfort yourself?"_

 _Tristan blinked slowly. "Maple's dead. How can I find comfort here anymore?" The brown tabby tom sighed, closing his eyes. "She was the only one who understood me. She mentored me herself. She was the only one to love me."_

" _Despite what you may think, there are cats in our group that love you more than you think." Violet mewed._ I know who you're talking about. Twyla. " _Listen. I went through plenty of rough patches in life, but-" Violet began._

" _This isn't about you!" He hissed, lashing his tail wildly. "I'll never be happy again! Maple isn't here anymore!"_ She's the only one who wanted me here. No one else. " _How could any cat understand me like she did?!"_

 _Violet growled softly. "That leads me to my solution. You want to feel closer to Maple even though she's dead? Then you shall become the next leader and learn how she dealt with it. Maybe then you'll come to your senses."_ But I don't want that. I want Maple back… " _I can see already that you aren't keen on it. Too bad, I'm doing it anyways. You can grieve with the rest of the group when you're ready, Tristan. But for now, why don't you sleep in here for the next few days? I'm still in the nursery and I don't think you'll be comfortable with everyone else yet."_ Why are you doing so much for me, _Tristan mused._ When we've practically hated each other our whole lives? _But he didn't want to turn down this offer. It was too good to refuse, even if Tristan didn't want to be a leader._

" _Fine." he choked out, his meow hoarse and dry._ But it'll never be the same. Maple won't ever be with me again.

* * *

"Tristan, come on. You need some fresh air." Tristan's ears pricked to the sound of Twyla's meow. _What does she want? Doesn't she still hate me?_ He glanced behind himself, narrowing his eyes. _You shouldn't want to talk or come near me. Go away._ "Tristan. You're coming with me."

Tristan grunted. "No. Don't you have an apprentice to train?"

"Firegaze is practicing her battle moves with Ivy and Dylan. Ivy knows how to train two apprentices at once. She practically trained me." snapped Twyla, her shoulder fur beginning to bristle. _Fine, fine. I'll go out of camp with you if it makes you so happy._ Tristan heaved himself off of his moss nest, stretching his forepaws. "Yes, sure, take longer than you need too. What was Violet thinking, making you a leader when we all know how lazy you are?" _Shut up!_ He turned sharply in Twyla's direction, baring his teeth. "I was just saying."

"'Just saying' my tail. Next hedgehogs will fly." Tristan spat. Twyla's tail lashed in anger, but she didn't say anything. _At least she can remember that I'm still a leader of our group._ The brownish gray she-cat growled at him, but didn't say anything. Twyla stormed out of the den and padded outside of camp. _I guess she expects me to follow her._ Rather begrudgingly, Tristan came after Twyla, his paws heavy. _I could be sleeping right now._ He stopped in front of her, his tail rested on the ground. "Where are we going and why?"

Twyla snorted. "You'd like to know, wouldn't you? Yes, I suppose you would…" She flicked her tail tip towards the camp exit with a smirk on her face. "Come on. It's a surprise." _If this to get me to start swimming again, then I'll claw her ears off!_ Twyla bounded at once for the the exit, while Tristan trudged slowly behind her. _At least she's her old energetic self again. Took long enough._ Once Tristan took one step outside of camp, his sight was blinded by the sun's rays. "Oh come on! It won't kill you!"

"That's what you think! It's murdered my eyes- oh. Nevermind." Tristan mewed, his pelt feeling hot with embarrassment. Twyla chortled, her light green eyes gleaming with amusement. _Fine. I'll only stay because Twyla's making it…enjoyable._ "So what are you going to force me to do?"

Twyla shook her head, still laughing. "Nothing, actually. I just wanted to show you something I learned how to do a few days ago." She jumped into the river, pawing her way through the calm waves that pushed gently against her pelt. _Stop! Don't do it!_ "See? I learned how to swim for you, Tristan!" _No! She could drown in there! It's not safe!_ "What's wrong?"

"You could drown like Maple! Get out!" Tristan yowled. Twyla rolled her eyes in annoyance. _Does she really not care? What about her life? Why should I even be worrying about her?_ "Twyla!"

She sighed. "You hang onto the past _way_ too much. I'll be fine, Tristan. Stop worrying, I'm a nat-" Twyla's meow was cut short by a large rush of water flinging her backwards. _No! Not again!_ "T-Tristan!" She yelped. "I need help!"

"B-But what if I don't make it to you on time? What if we both drown?" Tristan asked, his pelt bristling. _What if I lose someone else? What if I lose someone I…love…?_ Did he love her? It felt strange to consider, especially since he'd always ignore her whenever she spoke to him. _But I've always listened to her, even if it felt like I wasn't…_ He could remember all the things Twyla talked to him about. About hunting technique, their groupmates, even…death. _She really trusts me, doesn't she? She trusts me with her secrets. And now her life._ Wearily, Tristan gingerly wadded into the river, hoping that the waves wouldn't drown him like…Maple.

"Tristan! Stop messing around! I'm starting to lose my grip on this rock!" Twyla yowled, desperateness in her voice. _I can't lose her like Maple! She deserves a chance!_ Tristan pushed his way through the raging torrents as he swam towards Twyla. _I'll save you!_ His claws scraped against the rough surface of the rock as he gripped onto it, alongside Twyla. "Y-You actually-"

"I couldn't stand losing you either." Tristan gasped. The brownish gray she-cat went wide eyed, her gaze sparkling with surprise. "I'm going to tackle you towards your left, and since we're close enough to land, we should be able to make it."

Twyla whimpered. "And if we don't?" _I can't blame her. I'm not exactly trusting myself either._

He gently licked her cheek fur. "Then we'll be together, I promise. And you can blame everything on me." Twyla nuzzled Tristan's shoulder with her muzzle. "Are you ready?"

"Ready as I'll ever be." Twyla meowed, her muscles already tensing up. Tristan gave her a hard shove forwards, while he was also holding onto her still. _Please let this work!_ The waves slammed into them, almost pushing them back. Tristan shut his eyes. _This is it!_ He could hear claws scraping up against the ground. Were they moving? Soon Tristan could tell he was being lifted from the water and being dragged onto land. _T-Twyla?_ He blinked his eyes open, secretly hoping that it was Twyla that had saved him. Sure enough, Twyla was standing in front of him, licking his forehead. "You saved me. I can't ever repay you, Tristan."

Tristan weakly smiled. "I-It was nothing. You had to be saved." He rasped.

"Tristan. Don't." Twyla whispered in a calm, soothing mew. _She saved me. I should be thanking her._ She purred softly, her throat rumbling. "I'm just glad that you're okay. You're too precious for me to risk losing." _Precious? Really?_ Tristan closed his eyes, his dizziness taking control. _Maple…are you watching me? Did I do good after all?_ He let out one last sigh. _T-Thank you Maple…for everything._


	8. Without You - TorrentClan

Jayson glanced around the medicine den. _It's so lonely without Yarrow._ Yarrow, the group's last Healer had died in the past few days. It'd been getting dangerous for the group in the freezing leaf-fall, and Yarrow decided to go and search for some catmint just in case of an outbreak. However, it turned out that Yarrow had found the catmint, it's just that he'd been killed for it. _Stupid Clan cats…they killed an innocent cat for their own! They could've just warned him lightly and let him go!_ Yarrow had left Jayson all on his own, without any training whatsoever. _And no one actually knows any_ good _herbs or how to find them. I can't tell which is which._

"Are you still up, Jayson?" Holly, the dark tortoiseshell she-cat yawned from her nest. "Go back to sleep. There's no point in worrying about it." _She's going to cost her place here if she keeps loafing about!_ Jayson fought back the urge to rake her muzzle, looking back at the herbs. "Neither of us know any herbs, so why do you think that we'll be able to help?"

He sighed, closing his eyes. "We can't just let our entire group die, Holly. That's not what we're supposed to do." _If only I'd paid more attention to Yarrow when he was showing me the herbs…the whole group is doomed because of me._ "It's all my fault. I'm such an idiot."

"Shut up, Jayson! That's not true and you know it!" snapped Holly, her fur bristling wildly. _But it is._ She sighed, padding up to Jayson. "Are you okay, Jayson? Would you like to take a walk and see if that'll help you out?" _Maybe. But our group is in trouble and we can't just-_ "We're going on a walk, whether you like it or not. You've been hiding in here ever since Yarrow's death."

Jayson glared at her. "You never knew Yarrow!" He hissed, baring his teeth. "You don't have the right to say that." Holly closed her eyes, dipping her head. _Oh, I didn't mean to hurt her…_ "Holly, look I'm-"

"I get it, okay? You hate me for forcing you to take me and Spiritpaw with you to your group. Stop rubbing it in. I have feelings too, you know." Holly growled, stomping off to her nest. _I messed that up really bad._ "Anyways, I'm taking another nap. Don't wake me up or I'll bite your head off." _H-Holly, I'm sorry…_ The dark tortoiseshell she-cat flopped back onto her nest, causing a rather large 'thud' to echo in the Healer's den. _I'm such an idiot for yelling at her like that. I need to make it up to her somehow._

A grunt sounded from the other side of the den. "Are you two done acting like kits yet?" _Oh, by the stars no. She woke up Spider._ Spider was one of the leaders of the Ten Flames, with his mate Maple being the other. The previous leader before Maple had died to greencough, and Jayson didn't want to lose another cat to it. _The group's already lost one leader. They_ can't _lose another._ The brown tabby tom glared at Jayson, his amber eyes shining with sickness. "Get to work, _apprentice_. I don't want to get greencough. I already have whitecough."

"I told you Spider, Yarrow didn't have enough time to teach me everything about herbs. I don't know any of these." He sighed, staring at his paws.

Spider weakly hissed at him. "Don't give me any of that nonsense! Are you letting your leader die the same way as Owl, our previous leader? For shame. And here I thought you were a good cat." He sneered.

"Just go back to sleep, Spider." snapped Jayson, his claws digging into the earth. Spider rolled his eyes and curled back up in his nest. _Annoying feather-brain. What does Maple even see in him?_ Jayson cast another glance at Holly. _Is she okay? Maybe I should check if she's sick. She's been sleeping most of the time since she got here._ Padding up to the dark tortoiseshell she-cat, he leaned closer to her to listen to her breathing. _If her breathing's any similar to Spider's, then she has…whitecough. Hopefully she doesn't._ Holly's snores were congested, occasionally breaking into a coughing while she was asleep. "She has whitecough." He whispered in horror. Jayson's ears pricked to the sound of pawsteps entering the Healer's den. _Oh, what now?_ Spiritpaw burst into the entrance, his red eyes wide with excitement. _Could my day get any worse?_

Spiritpaw grinned. "Hi, Jayson! How's Holly doing? Is she taking one of her naps again? Is she having a good dream? I hope so! Are you-" He meowed all at once.

"Will you shut up for five heartbeats?!" snapped Jayson, baring his teeth at the young albino tom. Spiritpaw's eyes flashed with hurt, his tail now lying on the cold ground. "I'm sorry, Spiritpaw. I've just been…troubled recently." Spiritpaw tilted his head. _Right. He's training to become a mediator. Maybe he can help._

The young albino tom padded up to him, his red eyes brimming with sympathy. "Aw, it's okay. Do you wanna talk about it?" He mewed. Giving into defeat, Jayson nodded. _It's better than nothing._ "What happened? Was it something with Holly?"

"Yes. She thinks I regret having both of you come here to the Ten Flames, and now she doesn't want to talk to me. It really hurts, and I want to make it up to her." Jayson sighed, wrapping his tail around his paws. _Holly, I'm so sorry…_ "And now she's sick with whitecough and it could turn into greencough. I don't want to lose her, Spiritpaw…"

Spiritpaw licked his shoulder fur. "Aw, don't be upset. We'll go out and find something for her! Come on, let's go look for some lilac!" _Why…?_ "Lilacs are her favorite flower! She's bound to forgive you if we get some of those!" _Maybe Holly will forgive me!_ Spiritpaw ran straight out of the den, his tail lashing excitedly. Jayson stifled a purr. _He's always so enthusiastic, it's hard not to enjoy him._ He cast one last glance at Holly, who was already sleeping in her nest. _I hope she has good dreams…_ Padding out into camp, Jayson looked around the clearing for Spiritpaw. _He's disappeared already, hasn't he?_ Jayson's ears pricked up to the sound of chatter in the center of the clearing. _What's going on?_ Maple, one of the leaders of the Ten Flames was looking down at three young cats that seemed to be around the same age as Jayson. _What're rogues doing here? Has Maple gone mad?!_

"I will allow you three to stay here as members as the Ten Flames, then. Your brother can recover here." Maple meowed, her voice shaky. _Is Maple alright? I hope she is, because we can't afford to have anymore sick cats!_ "But first I must announce your acceptance into the group." Maple leaped onto the Perched Rock behind her, looking down at all of the cats below. _Great. More cats that can possibly get sick with whitecough and spread it further, killing us all._ "Cats of the Ten Flames, gather under Perched Rock for a meeting!" All the cats looked up at Maple, their eyes locked onto her. "Today we have three young cats joining us!"

"What?!"

"We don't want more sick cats!"

"Drive them away!"

Maple snarled at them. "Hush! Now, Star, Silver and Hazel, will you please step forward?" The three cats stepped forward like directed. The tiny dark ginger tabby tom glanced back at the Healer's den urgently. _What's his problem? Is he sick? He'd better not be._ "Star, I name you Starpaw. Silver, I name you Silverpaw and Hazel, I name you-"

"Hold up. I'm not going by 'Hazelpaw'. I go by Hazel, nothing else." The dark ginger tabby she-cat hissed, her fur bristling. _Feisty, isn't she?_ He could feel Spiritpaw's fur brushing up against his. _When did he get here?_ Spiritpaw smiled dreamily.

"She's so bold." He sighed, his red eyes lighting up with joy. _Now where is this coming from?_ Jayson shook his head. _No point in dwelling on it._

Maple growled. "Fine. I don't really care. Starpaw, since we don't have any fully trained Healers and that you're the only apprentice that actually knows any herbs…you'd best get started teaching the other two. Silverpaw, your mentor will be Springlark. Hazel, your mentor shall be… _me_." She snapped. _I don't think Maple trusts anyone else to mentor her and put up with her behavior, does she?_ "Meeting over!"

Spiritpaw purred. "Hazel's so bold and brave and now she's being mentored by one of the leaders? I must be dreaming…" Jayson rolled his eyes. _Idiot. What kind of cat can be infatuated with someone like_ her _?!_ Shame pricked his pelt. _Oh right. Holly and me._ "I'm going to go and try to make friends with her. Maybe she'll like me!" _What about you helping me with Holly?! Oh well. Maybe that Starpaw can help me since he knows so much about herbs._ Spiritpaw bounded towards Hazel, his tail lashing excitedly. _At least he has confidence._ From the corner of his eyes, Jayson could see Starpaw padding up to him. _Great. He's probably some know-it-all apprentice, isn't he?_

"Hello. You must be Jayson, the other Healer apprentice I've been hearing about. Is this the Healer's den?" Starpaw mewed, his pale silver eyes shining with eagerness. _He actually wants to heal others? I'm impressed. I only did it because I wanted to get away from my brother Frost…_ Frost was Jayson's older brother, who'd died from greencough days before Owl died. I'm such an idiot…I never even tried to talk to him before his death. Why, Yarrow? Why did you have to leave me? "J-Jayson? Are you alright?"

Jayson nodded, still distracted from his brief daze. "Yeah. I'll show you. The other apprentice, Holly, she's sick too and she's too stubborn to admit it. And don't wake her up, she'll kill you for it." Starpaw just sighed and walked into the Healer's den. Jayson followed him in, his heart about to burst from his chest. _Will he teach me and Holly about herbs? I hope so. But…he's not Yarrow. Will Starpaw even be willing to teach us?_

Starpaw was already sorting out the herbs inside. "Ugh, you both made such a mess! Your herbs would be doing better if you had them sorted out! For example: Keep your chervil and bindweed separate! And don't mix up your poppy seeds with foxglove, you feather-brains!" _Oh, so he IS the know-it-all. I hate him already._

"You know, our mentor Yarrow died before he could teach me and Holly. It's not like we know anything, but apparently you know _everything_!" Jayson snapped, his claws unsheathing and sheathing. Starpaw's eyes flashed with hurt. "Why don't you become our mentor then and replace Yarrow? After all, only you know about herbs!" He turned away, glaring at his paws. _Stupid Starpaw. Why did he want to become a Healer anyways? So he could mock us to death?_ Jayson's claws dug into the dirt. _I miss Yarrow. He was so calm and patient with me, and I blew it…I should've paid attention to him._ Pawsteps padded up from behind him. _Starpaw._ He grumbled to himself. Starpaw sat next to Jayson, looking at his paws. "What? Come to rub it in about how great you are at healing?" He sneered.

"No. Look Jayson, I'm sorry if I hurt you." Starpaw apologized, his mew heavy with regret. "I don't want to start out our relationship like this. I know I will never replace Yarrow, and I wouldn't want to. I could never replace someone so important to you, Jayson. Just give me a chance. _Please_."

Jayson sighed. " _One_ chance. Screw it up and I'm putting you on my fox-dung list." Starpaw purred, his pale silver gaze lighting up with relief. _And maybe I might like you after all._


	9. How Can I Help? - TorrentClan

**I'd like to say that this challenge and a few others take place in my AU world of Flames of Fury, in case of any confusion. And I hit the max word count two times while writing this, so uh...it might not be very good since I had to take out a good chunk of the beginning for this to be under the maximum amount of words.**

* * *

A sharp yowl broke into Dove's thoughts. "Dove! Stop being such a pain in the tail and get over here! Me and your leaders need to talk to you!" _Huh? Who is that?_ Rather reluctantly, Dove padded over to the direction the voice was calling from. With her tail dragging along the ground, she barely glanced at the other cats in camp staring at her. She pushed away the desolate feeling poking at her heart. _It's not like I should care. I don't even remember them that well anyways._ Trudging slowly into the den, she spotted Petal, Owl, and Spider glaring at her, their pelts bristling. _I think I remember them. I_ think _._ From the corner of her eyes, she spotted a young albino tom with striking bloodshot red eyes staring at her. _Wah! He's scary! B-But he's really young…how could one so fresh out of the nursery be so terrifying?!_ His eyes gleamed with pure, raw excitement while his tail lashed back and forth. _Aw...at least he's somewhat friendly…_

"Wow! Is she my mentor? Is she? Is she? Is she Petal?" The young tom mewed all at once. _He talks fast! I don't think I even know what he was saying! Oops, was I supposed to be listening to him?_ Petal, the large golden brown tabby she-cat cast a sideways glare at Dove.

Petal hissed softly. "She shouldn't be." The she-cat glanced in the direction of Owl, the light brown tabby tom. "Tell her what you called her for, because I'm not doing it." Owl suppressed a hiss but only his whiskers twitched. _What was that about? And why is Petal so upset about me? Is she worried? I don't think so…._

Owl sighed. "Dove, you're going to start training your first apprentice." _APPRENTICE?! WHAT?!_ He gave his chest fur a few licks. "Y-Yes, we all had the same reaction at first. But Petal isn't getting any younger, and you'll have to learn how to train new mediators for the group at some point. Don't worry, Petal should be able to help you at the most."

The golden brown tabby grunted. "I shouldn't have to." Spider let out a faint hiss at her, but didn't meow anything back. _Did I do that?_

"Do you think you can handle this responsibility, Dove?" Spider growled, his tail lashing in anger. _Why is he angry? Is he angry with me? Oh, by the stars, why can't I go for a day_ without _getting under anyone's fur?!_ "Dove! Are you even paying attention?" _You know the answer to that question by now! NO!_

Petal snorted in faint amusement. "You actually think that she can pay attention? Oh please. The only reason she's a full mediator is because I couldn't stand training her anymore. Always slipping up, making beginners mistakes, and never working on getting any of those problems resolved! Why would you even _consider_ giving her an apprentice?"

The young albino tom tilted his head. "She sounds fun. At least we'd be making mistakes together. That sounds really fun, because then I'll be learning something that I never knew how to do and-"

"Shut your yap, Spiritpaw. You shouldn't have gotten a "Clan" name to be an apprentice, and you shouldn't even be here! Kittypet scum!" Petal snapped, baring her sharp, yellow teeth. "Jayson never should've brought those two kittypets here! Both of them are disgraces to the Ten Flames! Spider, we need to get rid of-"

"No, and that's final. We need more members of our group. Holly will make a good healer and Spiritpaw will make a good mediator." he hissed, his shoulder fur bristling. Spider turned to Dove, his amber eyes narrowed. "Will you mentor him? He's very enthusiastic about training, so he shouldn't be _too_ difficult on you." Petal snorted, but didn't retort anything back. _Mentoring an apprentice? Can I? I don't know...but will this make Petal proud of me? She's never been too proud of me my entire apprenticeship...maybe if I do this, she'll be proud of me!_ Dove nodded, anxiety fluttering in her chest as if it were a butterfly. "Very well. But Owl already announced his mentor, so you were going to mentor him anyways."

Owl licked Spiritpaw's forehead. "Don't be too much of a nuisance, alright?" The tom smiled and bounded for Dove, his red eyes gleaming with excitement. "Alright then. That should be everything. You three are dismissed."

* * *

"Okay, we need to be careful with our words, Spiritpaw." Dove reminded her apprentice. Spiritpaw nodded, his gaze trained on the small group of rogues who were hunting on the Ten Flames territory. "One mistake and we could be shredded into mousemeat."

Petal chuckled softly. "Oh please. You'll get turned into mousemeat if anything." Spiritpaw shot Petal a glare. Dove stiffened. _Don't start a fight with Petal now, Spiritpaw!_ To Dove's relief, Petal didn't bother returning his vicious stare."Let's go and see if we can get those rogues off our territory after all." Petal padded softly towards the small group, while Dove gestured for Spiritpaw to follow. _I'm supposed to just stay here and assess his progress,_ Dove sighed internally. _Maybe if I was out there with them- no. Even Petal told me to stay behind before leaving._ Pricking her ears forward, Dove tried to listen in on their discussion from behind.

Spiritpaw growled softly. "You need to leave. This isn't your territory." _Oh? How long has this discussion been going on? It doesn't sound like he's very...friendly today._ One of the rogues laughed, looming over Spiritpaw. He took a few steps back. _Spiritpaw!_ "E-Erm…"

"Aw, is the little freak upset that we stole his precious prey? Well too bad. He'll just have to suck it up and deal with it." The rogue snapped, his yellow eyes brimming with anger. _Please don't hurt Spiritpaw!_

The albino tom hissed at him. "Leave my group's prey alone! You don't belong here! Find some other cats to torture, or even better- just don't torture them at all!" The yellow eyed rogue narrowed his eyes and took another step closer to Spiritpaw, his claws unsheathed.

"Nah, let's torture you instead." He chuckled before leaping for Spiritpaw. "Get the mangy old fleabag and pin her down!" He yowled. Spiritpaw dashed in Dove's direction, his red eyes wide in shock. _Oh by the stars no!_

"Dove! We need to run! The rogues-" Spiritpaw mewled. Dove simply grabbed him by the scruff and burst into a run. _We need to get away from here. But Petal's still back there….but would she want us dead? I guess not._ "Dove, we should hide there!" Dove sharply turned for a thorn bush and leapt into it. Spiritpaw let out a small squeak of pain. _Maybe jumping into it wasn't the best idea._ Releasing Spiritpaw from her jaws, Dove panted heavily. "Petal's dead because of me." He whispered in terror. "It's all my fault. Now Spider will kick me out of the group and I'll be a loner…."

Dove sighed. "I-It wasn't your fault, Spiritpaw." _It wasn't. Don't blame yourself._ Spiritpaw snivelled. "Don't worry, you'll be okay. If Spider decides to exile you, I'm coming with you."

"Really?" Spiritpaw murmured.

"Really."


	10. Counting Stars - TorrentClan

Stargaze yawned, stretching his paws. Shivering intensely, he gently let out a tiny squeak of displeasure. He blinked his eyes open, expecting to see the beautiful silver spotted tabby she-cat, Dove. _Oh, right. Dove's…gone._ Dove had ran away after Hazel snapped at her for ruining the bedding, much to Stargaze's surprise. _Hazel's snapped at Dove before, but I wasn't expecting her to run away!_ He glanced around his surroundings, noticing Blazeberry tending to the herbs. _Hazel and Spiritmask raised her._ A prick of guilt stabbed his heart. _I've never been a good help with her, haven't I?_ With a grunt, Stargaze removed himself from his nest and padded towards the exit of the Medicine den.

Blazeberry gave him a sideways glance. "Can you check on Holly for me? I can hear her complaining from here, and lemme tell you, it isn't pretty." Holly had kitted two healthy kits, naming them Hailkit and Dominic. Her kitting was a surprise to Stargaze, however, as she didn't seem to be expecting beforehand. _But she does lie in her nest all the time, so I wouldn't be surprised if she was hiding it with that or it was just hard to tell._ He sighed, shaking his head.

"I-I can't right now, Blazeberry. Can't you?" asked Stargaze, his meow edging with desperateness. _I can't be bothered with the reminder of how I'm missing out from having kits. Hazel has Blazeberry. Silverfire has River and Firegaze. I have none._ Blazeberry narrowed her green eyes.

She stared him down warily. "Why can't you check on her? It's your job, you know." _Maybe I'm grieving for Dove, ever think about that?!_ He barely tried to muster up a retort. _There's no point in arguing with her. She'll only tattle on me and Jayson will believe her, possibly even berate me for not checking on his beloved._ Padding away from her, he headed towards the Nursery to see Holly nursing both Hailkit and Dominic.

Stargaze cleared his throat. "S-So, Holly...uh...how's life going so far?" Holly only gave him a scowl that told him to back off and never return to the Nursery. He jerked his head towards Twyla, who only sighed in annoyance.

"She's fine, just being...Holly, as usual." Twyla grumbled, shooting a dirty glare at Holly. "Thanks for scaring off my kits, you giant pain in the tail. Now Funnelkit and Forestkit have probably ran off to who knows where."

Holly snorted, licking her forepaw. "Oh please. Quickkit didn't head for the moors when I came in the Nursery." Quickkit, the heavily scarred young brown tabby tomkit laughed, pouncing on Holly's fluffy tail. Shame washed over Stargaze's pelt. _He was attacked by that dog that entered camp,_ He reflected, sighing to himself. _And Holly saved him from certain death, while I did nothing. No wonder why he admires Holly so much._

Quickkit let out a squeak of excitement. "That's because Holly _saved_ me, mom!" He purred, puffing out his chest fur. Twyla rolled her eyes, presumably from hearing that over and over. Holly only grinned smugly at Twyla, snickering a little.

"You have quite a smart kit here, Twyla." Holly joked, her dark green eyes lighting up with amusement. "I think he takes a lot after his father, wouldn't you say?"

Twyla groaned in response. "Tristan only tolerates you because you're a medicine cat. Nothing else."

A playful gleam shone in Holly's eyes. She turned towards Stargaze. "We're best friends." She purred, flicking her tail dismissively. _Clearly I should leave then._ Stargaze walked out of the Nursery, sighing to himself. _I'll never get to experience the joy of having kits. Or having a mate._ Maybe he wished that he'd told Dove how he felt about her back then. Maybe he wanted to always be by her side. But now she could be _dead_. Because he didn't bother to help her feel better, or stand up for her when Hazel snapped. _If I'd done it differently, we wouldn't be in this mess._ Stargaze couldn't shake the feeling away. He'd messed things up so bad with Dove that he could've helped in getting her killed. And here he thought he loved her. _Maybe my love for her was stupid. It probably is, at any rate. She deserves better than me. She probably hates me._

Stargaze padded towards the camp exit, walking past Silverfire on his way there. _Is he guarding the camp_ again _? Why can't Violetstar see that his disability and his airheaded nature doesn't equal good camp guard?!_ He forced those thoughts down to the back of his head. He didn't want to complain about this. It just wasn't worth it. Heading towards the river, Stargaze stared at the waves as they pressed against the riverbank. _Dove and I used to fish over here. We spent time together all day, everyday. And now...she's gone._

Was there anything else he should be hopeful for? Dove was gone, and she was the only one who seemed to care about him. Silverfire and Hazel were far too busy to notice, but Dove? She always wanted to be around him, and always encouraged him to keep going on. But now? She could be dead, and Stargaze played a role in driving her away. Stargaze weakly unsheathed his claws, his paws trembling as if there was an earthquake. Raising his quivering left forepaw up, he dug his claws deeply into the flesh around his eyes, even raking his eyes himself.

He knew he smelled blood. But did it matter? He was feeling pain, it was the first thing he'd truly felt since Dove's death. Stargaze's own blood oozed down his face, and he could hear the blood dripping onto the ground, maybe some drops of blood had fallen into the river. The sticky texture of it almost repulsed him as he sheathed his claws, feeling faint. Was that a good idea? As he asked himself that, he realized with a sudden jolt that he'd possibly _blinded_ himself. Stargaze would never be able to see again if he had. Pawsteps rushed up to him. Checking the scent of the cat, he knew exactly who it was. Silverfire. Stargaze turned his head to face him, despite the fact that it was probably worthless to do so.

"I smelled blood! Are you okay Starga-" He stopped immediately once he noticed the blood dripping from Stargaze's face and paw. Running up to Stargaze, his lapped up the blood from his littermate's face ferociously. Between licks, he whispered, "Stargaze, what did you do to yourself?"

It felt like Stargaze had a hedgehog stuck in his throat. But he had to tell Silverfire. It hurt too much to keep it to himself any longer. He whimpered. "I miss Dove, Silverfire! I feel like I helped drive her away from SkyClan. And she could be _dead_ because of me! I just feel so sick and repulsed with myself that I couldn't take it anymore. It hurt too much! I needed to vent, Silverfire! I loved her…."

Silverfire wrapped his tail around Stargaze's haunches. "I didn't know you felt this way, Star...you could've told me how you felt. I definitely would've helped." His tongue roughly lapped one more time on Stargaze's bleeding scars. "And please, for the love of StarClan, don't _ever_ think or try to hurt yourself again. Sorry for not being there before. You're my brother, and I'm going to make it up to you. And hey, maybe Dove's not dead. If she is, then you'll be able to see her in StarClan one day."

"Thanks, Silverfire. I'll try to stay positive about Dove. Maybe she's still alive. But if she isn't, then for Dove's sake I'll be counting the stars."


	11. Betrayal of the Heart - TorrentClan

**~Spiritmask~**

Forcing my fur to lay flat, I glared at my mate, Hazel. "Y-You _attacked_ a medicine cat apprentice," I spluttered, my body shaking heavily in the freezing leaf-fall wind. Hazel looked down at her paws, her hazel eyes dark. "And trespassed onto ThunderClan territory. I can't believe you, Hazel…" She attacked Wasppaw, medicine cat apprentice of ThunderClan. Even worse, she has no mentor. ThunderClan will want to start a war with us for sure.

"Spiritmask, I'm sorry! I only wanted to find Dove! She's our Clanmate, remember?" yelped Hazel, her meow edged with pain. But Violetstar would've sent a patrol to find her, mouse-brain! I almost choked out those words, my breath heavy. Don't upset Hazel more, you dumb mouse-brain. She's already grieving over Dove. "Spiritmask, I'm trying to help! Don't you see?"

Shaking my head, I closed my eyes. "I know, Hazel. But you were the one to scare Dove away. You were the one who trespassed onto ThunderClan territory. And you attacked that apprentice." I took a step towards her, sighing to myself. "Hazel, I'll always love you, but…maybe it's best we split for a while." But I don't want to...I always want to be with Hazel no matter what. But Hazel still did something _wrong_. I can't be with her for now.

Hazel narrowed her eyes. "You just want to get rid of me like everyone else, don't you? All because I accidentally scared off Dove and hurt Wasppaw." She curled her lip. No, that's not what I- "It's okay to admit it, Spiritmask. You've always hated me, and that you only took me as a mate because you pitied me enough to trick me into loving you." You're crazier than a fox in a fit, Hazel! Clenching my jaws shut, I didn't dare sprout that out of my mouth either. Hazel's still sensitive over this. You can make her see reason. You are a mediator. "And now Violetstar's sending me on that patrol to find Dove only to get rid of me! Why won't anyone truly love me?"

I licked her cheek fur. "I do love you, Hazel. It's just that…maybe we need some time apart from one another." She took a few steps away from me, her gaze wide. The dark ginger tabby shoved past me, her pelt bristling in anger. H-Hazel! "W-Wait, Hazel! Come back!" She whipped her head to face me, her eyes glinting with anger.

"Why should I? After all, we needed some _time apart_." snapped Hazel, her tail lashing in anger. I'm sorry…I didn't mean for you to get so upset… "From now on, think before you speak." Hazel stormed back into the SkyClan camp entrance, shooting daggers at me. Oh, StarClan Hazel. I love you so much… I gingerly padded after her, gazing at her beautiful dark ginger coat and long, tangled, glossy fur. Suppressing a loud purr, I walked over to our adopted daughter, Blaze. She glanced at me, her green eyes sparkling with anger. Was that…because of Hazel? No. It can't be. Hazel and I _raised_ her. Blaze wouldn't hate either of us- right? We're a family.

Blaze growled softly. "Hazel attacked my best friend, Spiritmask. Stop trying to convince yourself that she's a good cat." She snarled, her voice a hiss. "Wasppaw's only a medicine cat apprentice. Hazel's the deputy of SkyClan. There's a large gap there, Spiritmask." Hazel's a good cat! She really is! Why can you only see the faults instead of the good? Blaze brought up a forepaw to her muzzle, beginning to groom herself. "Aren't you going to start cooing over her like a dove, telling me how I'm wrong for hating her for a crime? Because it's weird that you haven't already." I've never said you were wrong, but…I guess you really don't understand Hazel. And you never will, since you haven't put any effort into it.

"Blaze, just keep your jaws shut about Hazel. She's my mate and I love her; no crime of her's will change that." I grumbled, my claws unsheathing and sheathing as Blaze's sharp green gaze narrowed. "You'll never understand her, I see that now."

The brownish gray she-cat rolled her eyes. "Why should I try to understand her? She's always overbearing, snappy, and brutish- why would you even _think_ that I would want to connect to someone like that in my life? I hate her, and if she really cared about us and SkyClan she'd knock it off with her stupidity." A sharp, deep flash of pain and anger scorched my heart. Hazel and I _raised_ her. Hazel and I _found_ Blaze during that harsh leaf-bare. We gave her love and support her entire life, and this is what we get? Unappreciative behavior? No. I won't stand for it.

"Shut your trap, Blaze! Maybe if you could think about someone other than yourself for once, then maybe you'd be able to see that you're wrong!" I spat in fury. Turning away from her, I growled softly. "Just stay away from me until you learn some respect for your Clanmates." Blaze parted her jaws to protest, but quickly closed them once she realized that I wouldn't respond to a fox-heart like her. Glancing over in the Perched Rock's direction, I sighed. Maybe Violetstar won't exile Hazel once she got back from the journey. Maybe Hazel will forgive me after she gets back. Maybe things with Blaze will end up just fine. Maybe- stop telling yourself that, you hopeless fool. You'll only disappoint yourself in the long run. Staring down at my paws, my vision began clouding up as the thoughts echoed in my head. You ruined your relationship with Hazel. Violetstar might exile her. Your adopted daughter hates both you and Hazel. You are a stupid, stupid pile of blood and bones.

 **~Hazel~**

 _Trudging out of the Fighter's den, I stopped for a brief heartbeat as I noticed Spiritpaw and Holly having an argument. Again. Why couldn't they just get along? They seemed so close when I first came here with my brothers. Pricking my ears forward, I took a few steps closer to hear more._

" _Holly, you can't be lying all about camp all the time! You need to pitch in too!" Spiritpaw snapped, his neck fur bristling. Holly rolled her dark green eyes. "Come on, you know I'm right!" A light, dizzied feeling fluttered around in my chest. Why does he have to be so brave? And caring for his group mates? By the stars, why do I fawn over him so much?_

 _The dark tortoiseshell she-cat groaned in response. "What business is it to you, anyways? Just let me live my life and you live yours!" The albino tom narrowed his eyes. Holly's so stubborn! Growling softly to myself, I resisted the urge to rake her ears. I can't hurt her. She's a group mate. Narrowing my eyes, I swept my gaze over to the crowd watching nearby. Idiots! Why can't they go ahead with their own business?! A sharp prick of guilt stabbed at my heart. Oh. Right. I'm doing that too, aren't I? I guess I'm an idiot too, then…_

 _Spiritpaw glared at his paws. "I'm a mediator. I'm_ supposed _to help." He muttered, turning away from Holly. The dark furred tortoiseshell only hissed at him before stomping off towards the Healer's den. Aw, poor Spiritpaw. Why does he have to deal with her ignorance all the time? Why did Maple even allow Holly to stay here? Padding up to Spiritpaw, I sat next to him. He looked up, a distressed glimmer in his red eyes._

 _Licking his shoulder fur, I sighed. "What's wrong?" I murmured. He whimpered softly._

" _I don't think anyone in the Ten Flames listens to me anymore. Is it because I'm an apprentice?" he whispered. Resisting the urge to cuff his ears, I brushed my fur against his. "Hazel, only you listen to me. At least you always stand by me."_

 _I rested my nose on his forehead. "I know. Come on, why don't we go for a walk outside of camp? Maybe that will help you feel better." Spiritpaw only sighed as he got off of his haunches and glanced at me, his eyes glazed with defeat. I sure hope he'll feel better after this. Padding outside of the camp entrance, the crisp greenleaf breeze ruffled my fur. Spiritpaw only blinked, his gaze full of sorrow. Why did Holly have to be such a jerk towards him? He has feelings too! Lightly nudging his shoulder, I managed to get him to keep walking. He really must be upset about this… "Come on, there's a nice quiet spot we can head to."_

 _He didn't bother replying, instead he just followed me as I took him to my favorite spot to relax, which was a rather small oak tree. Spiritpaw looked up at the tree, his eyes wide. I lightly nudged his shoulder once more, jumping onto the lowest branch of the oak tree. The albino tom groaned._

" _Seriously, Hazel?" He whined._

 _I chuckled. "I bet you can't make it up here." Oh, I'm sure he can. It's just that it's the only way to get him to climb a tree or even touch one. Spiritpaw rolled his eyes and laughed, leaping onto the branch. He landed right next to me, a smug grin on his face._

" _I bet I_ can _." He meowed loftily. "And I did!" I let out a mrrow of amusement. He seems to be feeling better, at least. That's good. Entwining my tail with his, I rubbed my fur against his. Spiritpaw smiled at me, his red eyes gleaming with joy. "Thanks for cheering me up, Hazel. Sometimes things in camp get so…hurtful at times, you know? I'm so happy that you're my friend." My heart froze at the word "friend". Is that all he'll ever see me as? A friend? Why am I so hung up about it, anyways? At least Spiritpaw can stand me and my reckless behavior._

 _Sighing, I looked down at my paws. "Spiritpaw, will you always see me as a friend?" He tilted his head in confusion._

 _He murmured softly. "What do you mean by that?" My pelt grew hot as I sat beside him. My heart felt as if it would pound out of my chest as my tail tip twitched uncontrollably. Should I tell him? Or should I just play it off as a joke? But I might not ever get a chance to tell him like this...he could die at any moment, couldn't he? But so could I, and I would still never get to tell him how I feel… "And why's your pelt so hot?"_

" _S-Spiritpaw," I began, my legs quivering in pure terror. "I-I love you." His eyes widened in shock as the breeze had suddenly stopped, leaving us in complete silence. Spiritpaw tightened his tail's grip on my tail as the prolonged awkward silence between us seemed to last an eternity. He shoved his muzzle into my chest fur, purring._

" _I love you too." He breathed, his pelt brushing up against mine. Nothing could ever ruin this moment. We love each other. A light, fluffy feeling grew in my chest, maybe in my heart. Nothing will ever break us apart. Nothing…I promise, Spiritpaw..._

* * *

I gazed down at my paws, guilt prickling my pelt. I _broke_ my promise. Why did I ever have the bright idea to even yell at Dove? To attack Wasppaw, that medicine cat apprentice? Dove ran away because of _me_. ThunderClan hates SkyClan because of _me_. I'm such a fool. At least Violetstar's giving me the chance to redeem myself. But I'm going back to apprentice duties once I come back, despite her making me deputy. Violetstar said six moons of apprentice duties, maybe four or five if I went on the patrol to find Dove. She should've exiled me. I deserve it. Breaking my eye contact from the uneven ground, I saw Silverfire and Stone standing in front of me. Stone's face was in a scowl, although it's always in a scowl so I'm not surprised. Silverfire let out a small sigh.

"Hazel, look. I'm disappointed in you, but I'm not going to hurt you because of it." murmured Silverfire, his silver eyes weighed down with grief. I caused my littermate that grief. I'm so stupid. He licked my shoulder fur. "I'll welcome you back with open paws once you get back. You'll find Dove, I just know it." No I won't. Dove will hate me for it. And how will we even get to her? We'd have to pass through at least some of ThunderClan territory to get to Twolegplace, which is where we guessed where she ran off to. He padded off towards Violetstar's den, which I guessed was to spend some time with his mate. Stone hissed at me, baring his teeth.

He growled softly. "You are a disgrace to SkyClan, Hazel. I loathe the fact that you have to come on the patrol with us." Sharp thorns stabbed my heart as I dug my claws into the dirt. It was true. I _am_ a disgrace to SkyClan. Maybe I shouldn't be in the Clan anymore. Maybe I should be dead.

I let out a small whimper. "I know."

My words didn't seem to deter Stone from going on at all. He narrowed his red eyes, his sleek jet black fur bristling in a wild rage. Stone hates me. He used to be one of my closest friends...we used to go hunting together and patrols together. Now he _hates_ me, like Spiritmask. Am I destined to lose everyone close to me? Maybe Stargaze and Silverfire hate me too. I already know that Blazeberry does. Wasppaw probably hates me for attacking her. I only dipped my head in shame as Stone continuously went on about how bad of a cat I am. Which is true. My ears pricked up to the sounds of pawsteps coming up towards us. Turning around, I saw Spiritmask glaring at Stone with burning rage in his eyes.

"Leave Hazel alone." He snapped, his voice seething with anger. Stone opened his jaws to protest, but Spiritmask hissed at him before he could reply. In defeat, Stone stormed off, his tail lashing in fury. Spiritmask sat beside me on his haunches. "H-Hazel, about our discussion earlier? I-I'm sorry for hurting you like that. I don't want to stop being mates over something like this. I've loved you for so long, and I can't imagine ever loving someone else, or never loving anyone ever again."

My heart began to pound, as if it was a kitten in a fit. "'I'm sorry too, I never should've said that you hate me. I know you love me, Spiritmask. I'm sorry for hurting you as well." Taking in a shuddering breath, I began to sob quietly. "I couldn't ever imagine never loving you again, either. I don't want to be taken away from you, Spiritmask. Will you give me another chance, even after all this chaos I've caused?"

Spiritmask nodded, purring gently. "'I'll always give you another chance, Hazel. I've always loved you, and my heart always soars when I'm with you."

"Mine too." I whispered, unsure of what to say after that. "I promise I'll come back to you after we find Dove. And I'll make sure that I'll think of you the entire time."


	12. The Butterfly Effect - TorrentClan

Dovepaw glanced at Ivypaw, who'd just came back from her warrior assessment. _She's going to get her warrior name. I just know it._ Dovepaw hadn't caught _anything_ for her hunting assessment, meaning she wouldn't be getting her warrior name anytime soon. _Ivypaw deserves it. I don't._ Forcing a cheerful smile onto her face, Dovepaw purred as Ivypaw bounced over to her.

"So? How was it?" prompted Dovepaw, shifting her paws uncomfortably. _I shouldn't have to ask. Ivypaw did amazing, and I didn't._ Ivypaw's dark blue eyes shone with excitement, giving away all Dovepaw needed to know about how it went. _Much better than my assessment._

Ivypaw purred loudly. "It was great! Hazeltail and I caught two mice!" _And I caught nothing…_ Dovepaw shook away the thought. _My sister will be getting her warrior name. She deserves it way more than I ever could._ Ivypaw was spying for Jayfeather and Lionblaze in the Dark Forest, risking her life every time she closed her eyes. _While the only thing I'm doing is just existing and having the label of 'Third Prophesized Cat Destined to Save the Clans'. She's more important I'll ever be and deserves to be a warrior._

Dovepaw smiled at her littermate. "That's fantastic! Firestar's going to make you a warrior for sure!" She choked out, guilt hanging over her words. _I should be happier for Ivypaw, but I'm not. Why can't I just be happy for her?_ Ivypaw's tongue rasped against Dovepaw's cheek fur.

"Don't worry," She whispered between licks. "Firestar knows how important and special you are. He'll make you a warrior for sure." _I don't want to be a warrior if that's why he'd make me one!_ Dovepaw didn't want to be reminded of her "specialness" and how "important" she is to the Clans' survival, especially through her warrior ceremony. Why couldn't she just have a normal warrior ceremony if she couldn't be a normal cat? Why did StarClan have to choose _her_? Why couldn't they have picked Ivypaw instead? _Why did the prophecy even have to exist?_

Dovepaw closed her eyes and sighed. "I just want to be judged normally for once," She murmured so no one else could hear. _I want to be judged for who I am, not because of my powers._ "Like you."

Her sister tilted her head, bamboozled. "But you aren't like the rest of us." She pointed out. _But why should I be happy about it? Everyone else gets to lead a normal and organized life, while StarClan decided that I had to be their blessing and be their prophecy._ Dovepaw winced. She shouldn't think like that. She should be grateful that StarClan had given these powers to help her Clan. _But why do they all act as if it's a blessing, when all it has been so far is a curse?_

"But I wish I _were_." Dovepaw muttered, trying to fight back the tears welling up in her eyes. She wouldn't cry during Ivypaw's ceremony. She had to remain happy, at least until it was over. _And by the end I'll still be Dovepaw, while she's Ivy- something._

"Hush!" Dovepaw snapped her head up to see her mentor, Lionblaze, glaring at the two of them. _Am I in trouble?_ She turned to see the leader of ThunderClan -Firestar- darting towards Highledge through the clearing. _Is he in a rush to make Ivypaw a warrior?_ Her mind whirled as she struggled to remain interested in what was going on. Firestar leapt onto Highledge, his flame-colored glowing in the harsh leaf-bare sunlight.

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather under Highledge for a Clan meeting," He announced, his mew solemn.

The ThunderClan cats began to assemble within the camp's clearing; from the corner of her eye Dovepaw caught Poppyfrost's kits -Molekit and Cherrykit- frisking about in the front of the group. Poppyfrost swept her tail over them and made them sit quietly, much to their dismay. Daisy and Ferncloud were gazing up at Highledge from the nursery entrance, their pelts brushing up against one another as they sat in the clearing. Soon enough, Mousefur and Purdy -the elder's of ThunderClan- had taken their places beside the Elder's den. At the same time Foxleap, Jayfeather, and Briarlight had come out of the medicine den, watching from the entrance. As cats seemed to settle themselves, some of the senior warriors such as Sandstorm, Dustpelt, Cloudtail, and Sorreltail placed themselves at the foot of the cliff. _So many cats must come to a warrior ceremony,_ Dovepaw realized in shock. _Regardless of the Clan._

Firestar went on with his announcement. "Cats of ThunderClan. I think we all know of Icecloud's accident earlier today. She had fallen into a hole and dislocated her shoulder, but Jayfeather's put it back into place." He meowed, his tone firm and confident. _He really must understand the Clan's worries about what happened with Briarlight…_ "He says that Icecloud should stay off her paws for a quarter moon, but will be back to warrior duties soon."

Murmurs of relief rose from the Clan. A couple of cats in the clearing shouted Jayfeather's name, calling out "Jayfeather! Jayfeather!" _From the sound of it, Ferncloud and Dustpelt are cheering the loudest for him._ It did make sense. Icecloud was Ferncloud and Dustpelt's only daughter since their other daughters from an earlier litter -Hollykit and Larchkit- had died young. _I remember Birchfall telling me and Ivypaw about them. I wonder what they would've been like if they'd lived._

"I'll have to check the hole out for myself," continued Firestar, his green gaze boring into Lionblaze. Lionblaze gave him a curt nod in response, to Dovepaw's confusion. _Is Firestar asking Lionblaze to take him there? I guess it makes sense. Lionblaze won't die if he falls into the hole like Icecloud, he'll recover faster as well._ "I want Dustpelt and Brackenfur to cover up the hole using a solid barrier. I request that it be finished by sunset today, as we can't have anymore cats fall into it."

Dustpelt nodded briskly. "Of course Firestar," He mewed, dipping his head. "We'll get to it once Brackenfur returns from patrol."

From the corner of her eye, Dovepaw caught Poppyfrost warning her kits about the hole. "And don't either of you _dare_ go near that hole." She sternly meowed, reinforcing her warning with a tail flick around their ears. Both Molekit and Cherrykit let out squeaks of protest, making Dovepaw _mrrow_ in amusement. _Were me and Ivypaw ever like that before our apprentice ceremony?_ Dovepaw knew the answer to that question.

"I have another announcement to make. Two apprentices completed their warrior assessments today." Firestar went on. Dovepaw felt her heart lurch. _I didn't complete my assessment. Ivypaw_ did _. She should be becoming a warrior and I shouldn't. I don't deserve to become a warrior if I failed to meet what was expected out of me._

Ivypaw's eyes shone with excitement, her tail lashing impatiently. Dovepaw knew she should feel happier about the warrior ceremony, but she just couldn't no matter how hard she tried. _I must be really selfish if I can't feel happy about Ivypaw becoming a warrior._ From behind her, she could tell that Lionblaze wouldn't be all that pleased with her skills shown today.

Firestar turned towards Cinderheart, who was Ivypaw's mentor. "Cinderheart?"

"Ivypaw's battle training is exceptional, no doubt. Her hunting could still use some work, though. When she was hunting alone today she had gotten a vole, but it was a messy catch. Ivypaw let the vole get downwind of her and it nearly escaped." Cinderheart meowed. The gray tabby warrior glanced at Millie and dipped her head politely. "What did you think, Millie?"

Millie nodded in agreement. "Likewise, I agree." She glanced briefly at Hazeltail, who was sitting nearby the medicine den alongside Foxleap. Looking back she added, "During the team hunting, Hazeltail seemed to be embarrassed having to tell her what to do. Ivypaw will have to learn to shape up if she's ever put in charge of a patrol." Dovepaw could tell with just a brief glimpse that Ivypaw was listening with wide, troubled eyes. "But they caught two mice, both of them neat catches. Those mice never stood a chance! Ivypaw definitely should become a warrior. She deserves it, in my opinion. We'd be lucky to have her!"

A chorus of yowls came forth, all shouting in approval of Millie's words. Dovepaw gave Ivypaw's ear a lick. "Millie's right. You _do_ deserve it."

Ivypaw's eyes glimmered with relief. "Thanks. I was really worried when Cinderheart said that about the vole. It was an awful catch." She confessed, staring at her paws. _At least you caught something._ Dovepaw held back the sharp retort and continued listening. _It's my turn next._

"Lionblaze? What about Dovepaw?" Firestar spoke again as the Clan grew silent. Dovepaw's heart began to pound as if it were to burst out of her chest. _He can't hide the fact that I failed. I can't be a warrior. And even if he did manage to hide it, Spiderleg was there as well. He'll make sure that the truth is out there._

Lionblaze rose to his paws. "Dovepaw is the best apprentice any cat could hope for. She works hard and she works fast. Today she started her assessment by searching for a squirrel," He meowed. Dovepaw glared at her paws. _Here it comes. The blunt reveal of how I failed to pass my assessment and that I won't be a warrior._ Shutting her eyes and flattening her ears, she attempted to block out what they were saying. _I know how bad I messed up. I don't want to be reminded of it._

She felt Ivypaw's tail brush up against her back. _I don't want sympathy right now._ She wanted to snap, but she knew that Lionblaze was still speaking. _I don't want to make this day worse than it already is…_ Dovepaw took in a deep breath. Should she really be going on and on about this so much? _Maybe I should try to calm myself down._ However she tried to calm herself, she still couldn't help but feel crestfallen.

"In that case-" Firestar began, his voice breaking Dovepaw's train of thought. _I knew it. He wouldn't make me a warrior anyways._ To her surprise, Spiderleg interrupted Firestar.

He mewed, "Hang on, Firestar. I haven't finished. While Dovepaw _did_ make a mess of the hunting," He went on. "She went to help Icecloud when she had no idea of the danger that she could've faced beyond the bramble thicket. When we tried to get Icecloud out of the hole, she volunteered to be lowered down to help her, even though we had no idea what was on the other side. These are the qualities ThunderClan needs the most. Courage, loyalty, and the willingness to face danger for the well being of a Clanmate. In my opinion, we'd be mouse-brained not to make her into a warrior." Spiderleg finished.

Dovepaw's heart leapt as the yowls of approval drowned out most of her thoughts. She _was_ going to become a warrior alongside Ivypaw. Maybe today wasn't that bad after all. Ivypaw skipped around her as if she was an excited kit. _I'm going to be a warrior,_ She thought incredulously.

"Thank you, Spiderleg. ThunderClan will be all the stronger with these two apprentices joining the ranks of a warrior." He bounded down the rocks on Highledge, padding in front of them to face his Clan. He beckoned Ivypaw forth with a swish of his tail. At once the Clan settled down, their attention focused on Ivypaw and Firestar.

Firestar gazed down upon the silver and white tabby she-cat. "I, Firestar, call upon my warrior ancestors to look upon this apprentice. She has trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend her to you as a warrior in her turn." He declared, reciting the ancient words spoken since the Clans' birth. "Ivypaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend this Clan, even at the cost of your life?"

"I-I do." Ivypaw stuttered, her meow shaky.

Firestar went on. "Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Ivypaw, from this moment on you will be known as Ivyfang. StarClan honors your courage and loyalty, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan." Firestar took a pace forwards and rested his muzzle on Ivyfang's head, while the newly named Ivyfang licked his shoulder in response.

"Ivyfang! Ivyfang!" The Clan cheered. Ivyfang stepped back towards Cinderheart and Dustpelt once the yowls died down, with Cinderheart briefly laying her tail across her former apprentice's shoulders and with Dustpelt giving her an approving nod. _It's my turn next._

As expected, Firestar beckoned Dovepaw forwards with his tail. Dovepaw took a pace towards him, her paws tingling. Staring up at the flame-colored tom, she held her breath in as the ceremony continued. "Dovepaw," He began. "Do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend this Clan, even at the cost of your life?"

Dovepaw gave him a brisk nod. "I do." She squeaked.

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name." continued Firestar, his mew beginning to bore Dovepaw. _What will my warrior name be? Doveflight? Dovewing? Doveblaze? Dovefeather?_ Deciding not to think about it anymore, Dovepaw forced herself to focus purely on Firestar's voice. _Not gonna think about it anymore…I hope._ "Dovepaw, from this moment on you will be known as Dovecloud, after the warrior you'd saved, Icecloud." _Dovecloud because of…Icecloud? Because I saved her?_ Dovecloud pushed away the thoughts. There wasn't any time to dwell on it. "StarClan honors your dedication and cleverness, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan." As he did with Ivyfang, Firestar rested his muzzle on Dovecloud's forehead and she licked his shoulder in response.

"Dovecloud! Dovecloud!" The Clan yowled as if they were chanting to the stars themselves. Dovecloud stepped back a pace and bounded back to where she was standing before, only to be greeted with a playful yet hard shove from her former mentor, Lionblaze.

"Well done!" He purred, his amber gaze lit up with warmth. "If a cat ever deserved their warrior name, it's you." Dovecloud was purring too loudly to reply, but she nodded in response. She was a warrior now. As Firestar went on with his final announcement, Dovecloud caught a shared glance from Icecloud, whose blue gaze was shimmering with pride.

Dovecloud grinned and nodded back at her, her heart pounding with joy. _I'll prove that I'm worthy of the name Dovecloud,_ She decided at once as she gazed over in Icecloud's direction. _For you, Icecloud. I'll try my best._


	13. You Can't Know - TorrentClan

Violetshine stared at SkyClan's camp exit, her eyes narrowed. It was her vigil, the ancient ceremony that every warrior was supposed to undertake. A gentle breeze ruffled her fur as she gazed upon the exit. She was now a warrior of SkyClan. She was finally with her kin. Well, only her father, Hawkwing but still. _Why didn't Twigpaw want to stay with us? Why can't we all just be together for once, in the same Clan…_ Violetshine shook her head wordlessly. _Twigpaw made her decision. I'm sticking with mine._ Violetshine's gaze was cast over the warrior's den, her paws aching for rest. _No,_ She grumbled. _You are keeping vigil and you will deal with it._

The sounds of her Clanmates' snores echoed in her ears. Her eyelids began to droop as her own soft snore started to become more apparent. Violetshine snapped her head up, forcing her eyes to widen. _I need to stay up and watch the Clan for intruders._ Violetshine flicked her tail irritably. _Twigpaw should've been here too!_ She thought, an indignant prick poking at her chest. _She should've been suffering alongside me, at the least!_ Pushing away the thoughts, she let out a soft sigh. _I really shouldn't think like that. Twigpaw will have a vigil in her own time, and will understand what_ I _had to go through without her._

" _What she had to do without her."_ Did Twigpaw even understand what Violetshine had to go through? Living with a dysfunctional ShadowClan, living under the reign of Darktail, watching brutal murder everyday, and having to lose everyone close to her? Twigpaw would never understand. She had ThunderClan, the meddling know-it-alls that _always_ save the day, that _took Twigpaw away from her_. _Twice_. Violetshine had to work for her place in SkyClan. Don't get her wrong, Twigpaw also helped by saving Finpaw's life from the tree falling on his tail. But Twigpaw threw it all away for _ThunderClan_. Why? _Doesn't she care about me and Hawkwing enough to stay?_

 _How come you left me so many times,_ Violetshine hissed internally. _But you still say you love me? Why should I believe you anymore?_ A pebble seemed to lodge itself in her throat. Why should Twigpaw believe Violetshine either? After all, Violetshine was never truly there with her sister and there was no guarantee that they'd be close after all that had happened during Darktail. _Twigpaw isn't the only selfish one,_ She realized at once. _I've also been selfish._ Violetshine _had_ neglected how Twigpaw would've felt only because of Violetshine. She didn't care if Twigpaw wasn't comfortable in SkyClan, she only cared about how _she_ felt. _Maybe if I put myself in her paws I'll see why she moved back._

She sighed. Twigpaw had ThunderClan. She had a loving foster mother that _wanted_ her. Most of ThunderClan was welcoming and friendly to outsiders, and that's exactly what Twigpaw was. Twigpaw had _Alderheart_ , one of the cats that found them when they were in the tunnel underneath a thunderpath. _She was raised with the help of Alderheart…that must explain why._ A stab of guilt poked Violetshine's heart. _Needletail was basically raising me…but why aren't I more attached to ShadowClan?_

Violetshine knew the answer to that from the get go. ShadowClan only cared about the prophecy, and Needletail was the only one who didn't seem to think like that. Needletail was a rebel, and it always seemed like she was trying to break the tie between her and ShadowClan. _Until...she did._ Once Needletail had helped bring the rogues and Darktail to ShadowClan, it was clear that she didn't care much for ShadowClan anymore. It was clear as day that she'd broken the bonds she had to ShadowClan, and had moved onto Darktail and his Kin. Things got worse and worse...cats who wanted to leave disappeared, or so they'd thought. Then they found out that those cats had been _drowned_ by Darktail himself. _And Needletail supported it all…_ Should Violetshine be glad that Needletail had learned from it all? Well, yes but was the price of death necessary? Once Darktail had caught her giving away the herbs Puddleshine had offered to give away, he made her into a prisoner. _And it was my fault! I told Darktail, and it's still my fault that Needletail died!_

Violetshine felt her neck fur bristling wildly. Taking in a deep breath, she let her fur lay flat as she returned her gaze to the SkyClan camp exit. _Everyone's told me that her death wasn't my fault. But it feels like it._ Needletail died sacrificing her life to save Violetshine, giving her the chance to escape from Darktail and the Kin. The memory clung to her like the water droplets clinging onto Needletail's fur after her death…

"Run! _Now_! Make this count, Violetpaw!" Needletail had yowled to Violetshine -Violetpaw then-, the last words she would ever speak before her fate was sealed. Violetshine had ran like the wind to escape, with the rogue Raven on her tail. Needletail was killed by Darktail, Roach, and Sleekwhisker, the cats she had once looked up to so much. _And I had helped cause it._

 _I should've stayed and helped fought them off._ Violetshine growled to herself. _Maybe Needletail would be alive with me, and I would still have her._ A warm, gentle but rough breeze pushed against Violetshine's fur. She could feel someone's fur brushing up against her's. Casting a brief glance to her right, she was surprised to see nobody there. Yet the scent of someone was there as well. ShadowClan scent. As soon as she was about to yowl the alarm, she stopped at once when she realized whose scent it was. _Needletail_. Forcing her fur to lay flat, Violetshine sighed. Was Needletail with her? Did Needletail blame her for her death? Would anything be different if Violetshine had stayed and fought?

To Violetshine's surprise, a soft mew spoke into her ears. " _Of course I'm with you, you fur-ball._ " Needletail? It had to be. " _Nothing would've changed despite the both of us dying, Violetshine. You have a future with SkyClan, a good one at that. I never would've had one in the first place. But no matter what, I'll always watch over you, Violetshine. You're the best friend I've ever had, and I don't regret sacrificing myself for you in a heartbeat. We'll always be sisters, no matter what…_ " Violetshine blinked slowly, her breathing beginning to slow down at a steady pace. Not even the sacrifice of Needletail's life could break Violetshine. _I have to keep going f_ _or Needletail's sake._


	14. Draft 1 - TorrentClan

**A/N: Winter Games was never finished, hence Draft #1.**

* * *

 **~Firegaze POV~**

With a grunt, Firegaze weakly dragged herself closer to Dylan, yearning for the body heat of the older tom. It was leaf-bare, and unsurprisingly, it was freezing out. _Too cold to want to do anything!_ Dylan seemed to notice her scooching closer to her, entwining his tail with her's. Firegaze let out a soft, quiet purr. _At least I have Dylan to sleep next to._ Yawning, Firegaze rested her muzzle on top of her paws, her body screaming at her to go to sleep. A sudden jerk at Firegaze's tail made her head snap up. _What was-?!_ Whipping her head to see what had tugged at her tail, she saw Funnelpaw, one of the newest apprentices giggling at her. _Thinks she can get away with pulling at my tail, huh?!_ Firegaze immediately scrambled to her paws, her legs itching for a chase. Funnelpaw rushed out of the apprentice's den, an expression of pure terror plastered onto her face. _Oh, I'm not giving up on this!_ She raced out of the apprentice's den as well, set to find Funnelpaw.

"Firegaze!" yowled Dylan, his meow frustrated and irritated at the same time. _Sorry Dylan, but this is necessary._ Firegaze ran past Stone and Ivy, who were eyeing them with confusion upon their faces. _Once Stone finds out what this was about I'm going to be so dead!_ Pouncing onto the brownish gray tabby apprentice, Firegaze glared at her as the tension between them grew.

She let out a faint hiss at Funnelpaw. "What part of your mind thought that was a good idea?!" She snapped, her neck fur bristling. Funnelpaw only smirked.

"I _like_ being an annoyance," Funnelpaw declared with a smug grin on her face. _Wipe that smug smile off your face!_ "Like you do, oh great SkyClan leader," Firegaze almost flinched at Funnelpaw's words. It was well known in the Clan that Firegaze had an ego, a big ego at that. _But the only reason I have it is because I can't find anything I do good or amazing…_ Firegaze only got off of her, grumbling to herself. _Even an apprentice has to point out how annoying I am! At least Dylan doesn't do that to me!_ Firegaze thought indignantly. _Well, not all the time anyways…_ Funnelpaw only snickered, her light green eyes gleaming with excitement. "Wasn't that fun though?"

Firegaze snorted. "If by 'fun' you mean feeling incredibly groggy and tired because of a completely unnecessary morning chase, then yeah, that was _fun_ ," Her ears pricked up to the sound of pawsteps drawing near them. _Please don't let it be Stone!_ With a pang of dread, Firegaze found her suspicions to be correct. _Uuuuuuuugh-_

Stone sighed, shaking his head. "Firegaze, you're a warrior now. You can't be chasing the new apprentices around camp every so often," Ivy, who'd just padded up to him nodded in agreement. She wrapped her tail with Stone's, purring loudly. _Obvious much?_ Despite Stone and Ivy getting extremely close on the patrol to find Dove, they hadn't officially revealed that they were mates yet. _And don't even get me started on the way they look at each other!_

"It's not my fault that the warrior's den is uncomfortable and would be way more comfortable to sleep in if _someone_ would just move to the nursery already!" snapped Firegaze, her eyes narrowed. Stone only looked at her in shock, while Ivy guiltily stared at her paws. "I'm not lying!"

Stone cast a sideways glance at Ivy. "Y-You're expecting…?" He asked, his voice a whisper. Ivy nodded, sighing to herself. "Mine?" She rolled her eyes, sarcastically shaking her head. "I'm taking that as a yes."

Ivy growled softly. "What we're getting at is that you shouldn't be chasing the newer apprentices just because you're angry with them. You're a grown warrior, and you need to act like one. I dread the day you ever become a mentor..."

Firegaze suppressed a hiss. "Well, I guess Violetstar will be making me a mentor anytime soon," She snapped, glowering her paws. Feeling her neck fur begin to fluff up, she only stalked away in the direction of the apprentice's den. "Just don't let it happen again." Funnelpaw only nodded, her light green eyes shimmering with guilt. Padding up to Dylan, she sat beside him, her fur brushing up against his. Firegaze sighed.

"Firegaze, you know I don't blame you for being upset with sleeping in the apprentice's den still. I am too," Dylan murmured softly. "But don't you think you're taking it a little bit too far? I mean, I get it. Funnelpaw _is_ really annoying. Kinda like you."

Firegaze huffed. "I'm totally not like her at all," She growled. Dylan only chuckled, wrapping his tail around her haunches. Sighing to herself, Firegaze only cast her gaze up at Perched Rock. _I wonder when Violetstar will make Hailkit and Dominic 'paws._ To Firegaze's surprise, Violetstar padded onto the top of Perched Rock, her amber eyes lit up with excitement. _What's mom so excited about? Making kits into apprentices can't be_ that _exciting. Right?_

"Cats of SkyClan, gather under Perched Rock for a special Clan meeting!" She yowled, her tail lashing. Firegaze padded closer to the rock alongside Dylan, her neck fur beginning to rise. _I doubt this will be special or memorable._

 **~Funnelpaw POV~**

Funnelpaw walked over to her mentor, Hazel. Hazel only sighed as Funnelpaw drew near, staring longingly at Perched Rock. _Huh? What's wrong with Hazel?_ Funnelpaw lightly pawed Hazel's shoulder, her heart pounding. _Will Hazel snap at me? Hopefully she won't. But what if she does?_

"Yes, Funnelpaw?" murmured Hazel, her hazel eyes glazed with sorrow. _I've never seen Hazel look so sad before…she must be really upset._ Funnelpaw licked her mentor's shoulder.

She whispered, "What's wrong? You look upset." Hazel only sighed, her head hanging low. _It must be really upsetting then! I don't want her to be so sad!_

Hazel mumbled, "Sometimes I miss being deputy of SkyClan," _Aw…I wish she could be deputy again. Why did she get demoted anyways?_ Funnelpaw felt Hazel's paws gently cuff her ears. "Now be quiet. Violetstar's trying to say something." Funnelpaw only grumbled in protest, her tail tip twitching irritably. _Hazel didn't need to cuff me over the ears! I'm not some kit!_ A jolt of realization hit her once she remembered that she'd been made into an apprentice a few moons ago. _But still!_

Violetstar sat back on her haunches, raising her tail in the air for silence. Soon the crowd underneath the Perched Rock was hushed, and the pale gray and white tabby began speaking. "Today I have called you together an important Clan meeting!"


	15. Butterflies & Blundering Paws- TorrentC

Rainpaw yawned, stretching his paws. Blinking his eyes open, he shook his head as he glanced at his denmate, Wavepaw. His denmate's gray tabby pelt shone in the sunlight peeking through the cracks in the apprentices' den, much to Rainpaw's annoyance. _Why should Wavepaw get all the sunlight?_ Tackling his denmate, Wavepaw let out a squeak of annoyance as he pushed Rainpaw off of him.

"What was that for? And what time is it?" Wavepaw yawned, a sharp edge to his meow. Rainpaw only nudged the gray tabby, attempting to get him to his paws. "I'm not getting up until you answer both of my questions, Rainpaw." Rainpaw rolled his eyes, digging his claws into the ground.

He grumbled, "Well, sorry Wave _star_. I just don't think it's fair that you get to hog all of the sunlight when I don't get any. Also, it's sunhigh."

Wavepaw got up, shaking his long fur. "Well, _thanks_ for reminding me," He replied, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "We might as well get up now rather than later, though. You know how Warblerstar is." Rainpaw padded alongside Wavepaw outside of the apprentices' den, his fur prickling with apprehension. He didn't want Warblerstar to be livid with them for sleeping in; the tom was scary when he had to be. _Which, unfortunately is all the time._

The sun's rays seemed to blind Rainpaw's sight as he stretched his paws and yawned. _I hate being up this early,_ He grimly reminded himself. _But I sure don't want Warblerstar clawing my ears off for something like this._ Spotting Wavepaw's mentor, Tawnyshell, he nudged Wavepaw's side.

"Come on, we should head over to the grump before he comes to us," He meowed, half jokingly and half serious. Wavepaw reluctantly followed, grumbling to himself. Tawnyshell, the golden brown tabby tom was impatiently pacing back and forth by the camp's exit, unaware of the two apprentices gawking at him. _Does he even realize that he's making a scene?_ Padding up to the tom, Rainpaw nervously opened his jaws to greet the tom. "H-Hi, Tawnyshell…"

Tawnyshell shot a glare at the two apprentices, although a glimmer of worry shone in his eyes. "You two were supposed to be up earlier today! If you have this habit still roaming amuck in you, you'll never survive the life of a warrior!" He growled, resuming his never ending cycle of pacing back and forth. With a groan, he eventually sat back on his haunches, shaking his head. "You'd better hope Warblerstar doesn't find out. Anyways, where's Palefern? They should be here."

Rainpaw swiveled his head to catch a dilute tortoiseshell cat padding up to them, their tail dragging along the ground while their muzzle faced the ground. Their matted fur stuck up around their neck, and their eyes were barely visible underneath all their fur. _That's Palefern alright,_ Rainpaw grimaced, slightly put off by their disheveled appearance. They trekked over to Tawnyshell and glanced fell to their paws as they begrudgingly glanced at the two apprentices.

Palefern sighed. "Why did Warblerstar have to have us do this _so_ early? Couldn't it have been at sundown or some mousedung like that?" They wrapped their tail around their forepaws, now slightly irritated. "Either way, I hope you two are ready for your assessment. You'll pass, hopefully."

"Well of course they'll pass," A booming voice yowled from behind the four cats. Rainpaw swiveled around to be face-to-face with Warblerstar, the leader of FinchClan. _Oh, StarClan!_ The large tom's cream tabby pelt shimmered against the sunlight, as well as his light green eyes. "Since they had fine mentors in the two of you, and that today is the perfect day for such assessments."

Tawnyshell glanced at Wavepaw, cocking his head. "I don't know, Warblerstar. It seems a little early to me for them to have their warrior assessments." Palefern nodded, staring up at the cloudy sky.

They mewed, "And despite the weather looking good…it might be downright horrible in there, Warblerstar. Are you sure this is a good idea? I mean, Juniperstar never did this with FinchClan's apprentices-"

"Don't you dare mention that name, Pale _paw_ ," spat Warblerstar, his voice edged with venom. "Lest we forget that you're the cause for his demise. Had too much trouble on your warrior assessment, so much so that he had to step in. Then…," The cream tabby let out a faint, distant chuckle, as if he had lost himself in the moment of reminiscing. "Let's just say snarling comes from the strangest of places."

Rainpaw looked over to his mentor. _What had happened to them?_ Palefern's matted pelt was bristling, as well as their tail flicking back and forth. Never had Rainpaw seem Palefern this upset. With their shoulders bunched up and their hackles raised, Rainpaw could easily assume his mentor was enraged with Warblerstar's mention of their warrior assessment. But Rainpaw knew his mentor too well; he could tell that Palefern was thinking about the time in terror, along with the fear scent on their pelt. _Did something…happen in there?_ A shiver ran down Rainpaw's spine as he thought more and more about it. _I don't want to think about it, but..._

Palefern flinched, glancing down at their paws. "Fine. Just let us get on with the assessment already. Come on, guys. I want to get this over with already." Rainpaw froze. Would he experience the same thing as his mentor? Not wanting to look afraid, Rainpaw forced himself to stay alert, as if he was intent on passing his assessment. _Because after hearing that, I don't think I want to even do this._

Warblerstar let out a grunt, much to Palefern's dismay. "May I give some words of encouragement to our apprentices? It might be useful, as…some cats need extra heartening before something so life changing." Palefern only let out a hiss and headed for the exit.

They simply growled, "And some cats need to keep their noses where they belong." Palefern stalked out of camp, their tail lashing. _Is Palefern okay?_ Rainpaw asked himself, blinking in surprise at his mentor's decision. _They should be soon, if not now. I hope Palefern feels better soon._

Tawnyshell sighed. "Sorry about that, Warblerstar. Palefern hasn't been…at the best since their incident."

Warblerstar nodded. "Agreed. Would you mind going to find them? No matter how…grating Palefern can be, they are a Clanmate." Tawnyshell gave his leader a brisk nod, bounding through the exit of camp. The FinchClan leader turned his attention to the apprentices. Wavepaw whimpered, his whiskers twitching. "Oh, I'm not going to hurt you. Now, listen up. Since the previous leader's…accident, the assessment has been changed up a bit to make sure nothing like it happens again. So, I'm going to slip in a few tricks to get past it. After all, you're the first cats to try this."

Rainpaw's eyes widened. First to try the changed assessment? _That seems…daunting._ From the corner of his sight, to Rainpaw's surprise Wavepaw seemed to be…excited at the sound of that. _Wasn't he scared at the prospect of this earlier?_ Shaking off the odd feeling trying to get underneath his fur, he simply pricked his ears forwards, awaiting for Warblerstar's advice.

"Now, when you get to hunting, it's best to head for Hound's Hollow instead of the normal hunting grounds," Warblerstar meowed, his gaze struggling to remain focused on the apprentices. _Hound's Hollow? Isn't that…the old dying tree by the border with VineClan?_ Hound's Hollow was a horrible spot to hunt, let alone find any wildlife nearby. "You fancy me mad. But think about it- it's possible to find prey practically anywhere, am I right? I've been hunting there, and I will say that sometimes the best prey lurks there. But you must be patient."

Wavepaw nodded. "So we should head there, is that what you're saying?"

He shook his head, licking his forepaw. "Oh, no. I ordered Palefern and Tawnyshell to take you there. A little challenge is good for everyone, no? Now, I believe that you'll be able to pass your assessment. _Both_ of you. So go ahead and find your mentors, they'll be waiting for you." Warblerstar nudged Rainpaw's shoulder, causing him to begin padded towards the exit. Wavepaw came to his side, pride sparkling in his amber gaze. Feeling sick to his stomach, Rainpaw had to force himself to keep walking alongside Wavepaw. _Just why would Warblerstar send us to Hound's Hollow, of all places?_

* * *

"Rainpaw! I think I smell squirrel!" Wavepaw yowled, leaping at Rainpaw from the undergrowth. Rainpaw bit back a bitter retort and glanced at his denmate; he knew it was best to hold his tongue. "We can try catching it together!"

Rainpaw nervously tilted his head. "I don't know, Wavepaw…we should probably just hunt separately instead. I don't want to get in trouble with Palefern." _And I don't want you to get in trouble with Tawnyshell,_ He added.

Wavepaw gave him a downcast look. "Are you sure? Our mentors will be impressed with us; I'm sure that the two of us could find a squirrel here if we look together!"

Glancing at his surroundings, Rainpaw let out a shudder as his eyes rested upon the old tree, otherwise known as Hound's Hollow. _I wonder why it's called that._ The branches of the tree were drooping, as if they were slowly, painfully dying as time went on. On the ground, the grass was a singed, dark gray color. In contrast to the greens of FinchClan's territory, the grass looked as if it was scorched. Looking back at Wavepaw, Rainpaw shook his head.

"This place is practically dead. Warblerstar wanted us to fail," Rainpaw grumbled, clawing at a plump of dead grass that he'd already dug up. Wavepaw only sighed and began looking up at the old tree, presumably to find a bird. _Perhaps Wavepaw can't see it, but I can…this place is where our warrior names shall be buried._ "Come on, let's just go elsewhere and find prey there. We can say that we found it here-" Rainpaw's meow was cut off at the sound of a echoing screech of a bird pierced his ears. His eyes widening, he cautiously turned to Wavepaw, whose gaze brightened as he looked up at the tree.

"It's a vulture!" Wavepaw gasped in excitement, his tail lashing. Turning towards Rainpaw, he bounced up and down. "We could try catching it!" _Oh, come on…are pulling my tail, Wavepaw?!_ Before Rainpaw could protest, Wavepaw had already begun climbing the tree. Rainpaw rushed over to his denmate, hoping that he could get Wavepaw to stop.

Rainpaw came to a halt once he reached the roots of the tree. "Wavepaw, get down!" The gray tabby tom ignored him, now at a position on the tree where he could pounce for the large bird. _Wavepaw, you're a mouse-brain._ "Wavepaw!" Rainpaw screeched, digging his claws into the tree bark. By the time Rainpaw had called for Wavepaw once more, the tom had jumped for the vulture. The large black bird flew up as Wavepaw's claws swiped at the dead branch the vulture rested upon, causing the branch to fall down onto the ground along with- _Wavepaw!_

Wavepaw let out a screech of terror as he fell to the ground, with Rainpaw frozen in fear. _W-What should I do? Will I be able to catch him? Oh, StarClan, save him!_ With a screeching halt, Wavepaw crashed onto the forest floor, along with the branch falling on top of him. Rainpaw's legs felt stiff with horror and apprehension. _I-Is Wavepaw okay…?_ Numbly padding up to Wavepaw's body, he pressed his muzzle into Wavepaw's fur as the dead, chilling silence between the two of them grew.

"Wavepaw?" Rainpaw murmured into the tom's fur, hoping he'd hear his voice. Taking in Wavepaw's scent, a powerful odor took over his nose. An odor he knew far too well. Rainpaw held in his breath, shaking his head. "Wavepaw isn't…he can't be…he was here a moment ago…" _Wavepaw's dead. And I let him die._


	16. Shattered Trust - TorrentClan

Cloverfrost pressed her nose against the cool, crystal clear waters of the Starpool, a shiver running down her spine as she lapped at the waters her ancestors had drunk from before. _I must share tongues with StarClan,_ She grimly thought. _Before SwiftClan falls apart like VineClan and FinchClan…_ The idea of sharing tongues with the spirits bored her; why would StarClan bother to help the Clan, when they were too busy with their own affairs? _Why send a former medicine cat who has no desire to return to this accursed place?_

The albino she-cat shut her eyes, allowing the darkness to take a hold of her. She knew this process all too well. Cloverfrost would see some starry cat related to her 'destiny', they'd give her 'advice', and forcefully kick her out of their domain. _Petty mouse-brains._ Blinking her eyes open, she awoke to nothing but an empty void, as if she was on air. _Is this some stupid StarClan trick?_ Whipping her head around to face her back, a brightly colored tortoiseshell cat padded up to her, their green eyes brimming with sorrow. Taking a whiff of this stranger's scent, Cloverfrost took a few paces back, her neck fur rising.

"No need to be afraid, my dear friend. Don't you remember me?" The cat spoke, their voice a hushed whisper. Cloverfrost narrowed her eyes, analyzing this cat. _It can't be Palefern or Nutfang,_ She concluded. _They may be tortoiseshells, but they certainly don't have patterns that colorful._ Shutting her eyes, Cloverfrost winced in pain. Her heart seemed to shatter into tiny bits and pieces, leaving her to writhe in despair at the memories flooding back to haunt her. _I remember you too, friend._ "Tell me, why have you been so angry with your new Clan?"

Cloverfrost shook her head, looking away from them. "I'm not angry at all. I'm perfectly fine in SwiftClan. The tyrant Warblerstar is dead, and Swiftstar has helped us find peace after the Vine Massacre and Warblerstar's tyrant reign. What should I be angry about?"

"You're lying," They hissed, although their voice intermingled with concern. "Do you not trust me with your secrets and doubts?"

With a soft growl, Cloverfrost shut her eyes. "I do, Houndwillow. But some are better left unsaid."

Houndwillow took a step towards Cloverfrost. "And some things are better left said. Tell me. Why is it that you feel such anger towards them?"

"I will not say what it is, nor is anything bugging me. Let me go back to SwiftClan so I can share the news," Cloverfrost huffed, stalking away from Houndwillow. "SwiftClan is in strong paws, and nothing will go wrong. I have no doubts." Houndwillow glowered her, their eyes gleaming with growing anger.

They spat, "You're lying to my face, once again! Tell me, Cloverfrost. What is it that is so horrible that you feel the need to keep the truth from me? When did you change? Why do you ignore my pleas?"

Cloverfrost whipped her around to face them. "It's none of your business!" She roared, rearing back on her haunches. "Just leave me be!"

Houndwillow sighed, backing down. "So you wish to reject me? That's fine, I guess. But I only wanted to help." The tortoiseshell began to fade away into mist, much to Cloverfrost's surprise. _I thought you were joking._

"Houndwillow, I didn't mean to- I'm sorry. Please, will you stay?" She choked out the words, grief welling up in her chest. Cloverfrost really didn't want Houndwillow to leave her; it'd been so long since she'd seen them. No reply came. " _Please_."

The former VineClan cat sighed. "F _iiiiii_ ne. But no more lashing out at me, okay? I don't like that." Cloverfrost only nodded; there was no use in arguing. At once Houndwillow appeared again, their eyes narrowed. "You heard me the first time. Why?"

Cloverfrost shuddered. Could she really tell Houndwillow how she felt? About all of these feelings bubbling up inside of her, all of those conflicting storms brewing up inside of herself? Her friend's eyes shone with irritation and worry. She _had_ to now. There wasn't any turning back at this point.

The albino she-cat lowered her head. "The Clan has betrayed me far too many times to count." Houndwillow tilted their head, clearly confused. "Back when we were FinchClan, I was bullied just for having a strange white pelt and these strange pink eyes. For something I can't control. That was when I realized how judgemental the Clan really was. Then Warblerstar took power. I ran away with you, and I thought that was the end of it once we joined VineClan, never to be bothered with those mange-pelts ever again. But I was so wrong…"

"FinchClan attacked VineClan, as I'm sure you remember. And why? Because Warblerstar was jealous that Amberbloom loved you and not him! And then they took you away from me, the last remaining piece of my sanity! Houndwillow, I can't live in the same camp with those…those murderers. FinchClan may have turned to SwiftClan, but it will always be the heart of darkness within the forest."

Houndwillow licked Cloverfrost's forehead, sighing. "But not all of the FinchClan cats tried to kill, you know. Some of them didn't want to do it. They were only following Warblerstar's orders." _Sure, following orders. What a lovely excuse for their crimes._

Cloverfrost spun around, her tail lashing. "How can you say that about the cats who wanted you _dead_? Surely you'd feel anger towards them too?"

"No, I learned to forgive long, long ago. I cannot change others or their actions, but I can forgive them. I only hope they learn from their mistakes and move on," Houndwillow murmured, sounding slightly wistful. _I doubt it._ "You'll learn one day, Cloverfrost."

Cloverfrost sighed, caving into Houndwillow's protests. _I don't want to keep this argument going for too long._ "I guess," She meowed, her tail tip twitching. "But don't expect me to forget what they did so easily."

"I don't. Just…do this for me, alright?"

She grunted, shrugging her shoulders. "I'm not making any promises." _FinchClan still betrayed me. I'll never forget the pain they gave me. Houndwillow might've forgiven them, but I can't. Not after…all they did._


End file.
